FAA plans to cut 10% of flights in major markets due to shutdown-related staffing issues

The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing flights in 40 “high-traffic” markets by 10% due to staffing shortfalls resulting from the government shutdown, officials announced on Wednesday, as employees are increasingly calling out instead of working without pay. 

The reductions are necessary to keep the flying public safe despite a shortage of air traffic controllers, Transportation Department Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said. Delays and cancellations have surged across the country in recent weeks as FAA has adjusted air traffic to account for fewer controllers on the job. 

The reductions will take effect on Friday, though Duffy declined to say which specific areas or flights would be impacted. The reduction in flights will last until the absenteeism issue is abated, he said, adding that additional steps could be implemented if the situation worsens. 

Air traffic controllers, like hundreds of thousands of federal employees working during the shutdown, missed a full paycheck last week. Duffy said he heard from the workforce that most employees could weather one missed paycheck, but “virtually all” would be significantly impacted if they had to miss a second. The employees are guaranteed back pay when the government reopens. 

There has not been a single event that triggered the decision, Duffy and Bedford said, stressing that they were taking the action as a preventative measure. Officials considered a “panoply of options” and the decision “was not taken lightly,” they said. 

Employees who have continued to show up to the job are “working longer hours, they're working more days, and that's some of the pressure that we're seeing on them,” Duffy said. “We want to alleviate that pressure before it becomes an issue.” 

He added he was proud of employees who are continuing to show up to work. 

“They're coming to work because they're patriotic Americans,” Duffy said. 

Future decisions will be made based on data on workforce availability, the officials said. 

“If it gets worse, if we have more issues with our controllers, we will analyze the data and we'll take additional steps,” Duffy said. 

Controller call outs surged last weekend. Half of the nation’s “Core 30” airports were experiencing a shortage of air traffic controllers, including 80% in the New York area.

Duffy has repeatedly suggested the national airspace is less safe as many employees are working side jobs to support their families or are otherwise distracted while they continue to show up as air traffic controllers. Still, he and Bedford emphasized that it is still safe to fly in the United States. 

In the 2018-2019 shutdown, a significant uptick in air traffic controller and Transportation Security Administration screener staffing shortages helped spur the end of the standoff. That shutdown lasted a record-setting 35 days, a mark the current standoff surpassed on Wednesday. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association on Friday issued a plea for Congress to pass a “clean” continuing resolution that would reopen the government.