US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that air travel capacity at 40 major airports could be reduced by up to 10% in the coming days if the government shutdown continues.
“This decision, which is expected to only affect domestic flights, was made because air traffic controllers reported fatigue,” the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) administrator said in a briefing with Duffy.
About 1.4 million federal employees, from air traffic controllers to park rangers, are working without pay or on mandatory leave. Because the U.S. Congress has not agreed on a budget for federal funds.
Unions say many employees are falling ill or forced to take on second jobs due to the stress.
On Wednesday, the standoff became the longest shutdown in U.S. history.
“This is unusual, the closure is unusual, just as it is unusual that our air traffic controllers have not been paid for a month,” FAA Administrator Brian Bedford said of the planned flight cuts.
Reuters, citing four unnamed sources, reported that flights would be gradually reduced, starting with 4% of domestic flights on Friday, 5% on Saturday, 6% on Sunday and reaching a full 10% next week.
The names of the affected airports – all in high-traffic areas – will be released on Thursday, officials said.
US media, including BBC partner CBS News, have reported that the list will include the country’s busiest hubs, including Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Denver International Airport, Chicago O’Hare International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport.
Between 3,500 and 4,000 flights per day could be affected by the cancellations. American media also reported that international flights would not be affected.
“We are seeing the pressure building up in a way that, if left unchecked, we are unlikely to be able to continue to inform the public that we operate the safest aviation system in the world,” Bedford said at a briefing Wednesday.
Duffy insisted that air travel was still safe and that the decision to cancel flights was made to maintain safety and efficiency.
As the shutdown continues and more pressure is placed on the system, additional restrictions may be needed, Bedford said.
American Airlines, North America’s second-largest airline, said in a statement that it was waiting for more information from the FAA to decide which flights to scrap, but that it “expects the majority of customer travel to be unaffected.”
A spokesperson for Southwest Airlines, another major airline, said in a statement that the company was still assessing how the flight restrictions would affect its service and would notify customers as soon as possible.
“We continue to urge Congress to immediately resolve the impasse and restore our national airspace system to full capacity,” the spokesperson added.
Delta Air Lines declined to comment. The BBC also asked for comment from other major US airlines.
When government funding ran out on Oct. 1, most federal employees were sent home and told they would get paid when the government reopened. However, those deemed essential, such as controllers, were required to continue working without pay.
Soon after the lockdown began, airports began to feel the impact. Some had to ground their planes for hours after air traffic controllers notified them they were sick, while others relied on air traffic controllers at other airports.
Duffy warned earlier this week that flights could be canceled as half of the country’s 30 major airports experience staffing shortages.
Nick Daniels, president of the union representing more than 20,000 airline workers, put the situation starkly Wednesday.
“Air traffic controllers are texting me saying, ‘I don’t even have money to put gas in my car to get to work,’” he told CNN.
“We base what we do every day on predictability,” he said. “There is no predictability at this time.”
In an interview with NPR, one manager suggested that the situation may have reached a “tipping point” for him and his colleagues. “This is similar to the last lockdown when people were just starting to get sick of it,” they said.
Another air traffic controller told the same broadcaster: “If a lot of people are sick and out of work and I have to work with them, the safety margin goes down.”
Another air traffic controller and single mother, who recently wrote for MSNBC, says she works for the food delivery service DoorDash after her daily air traffic shift and “gets only two hours of sleep most nights.”
“Like many families, we did not plan for closure,” he wrote. “But the bills don’t stop.”
Duffy previously said there were risks to air traffic controllers taking on extra work during the lockdown and had threatened to fire controllers who did not show up for work.
“They have to make a decision: Are they going to go to work and not get paid and not put food on the table? Are they going to drive for Uber or DoorDash, or are they going to work in the waiting room?” Duffy said Sunday.
