The president donald trump demanded this Monday from the air traffic controllers of the United States “get back to work right now” while the federal government shutdown enters its sixth week, with thousands of flights canceled and delayed at the country’s main airports. Trump publicly warned that those who do not show up to their jobs will face “a significant pay cut” and promised economic incentives to those who maintained assistance during the 41 days of strike, although at the moment it did not clarify how many workers would be eligible for such rewards. In addition, the president assured that he will accept the resignation of employees who persist in their absence, according to statements spread on social networks and reported by various American media.
The staff shortage in control towers is one of the most acute effects of the government paralysis began on October 1, which has interrupted salary payments to federal employees. According to figures provided by Bryan Bedforddirector of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)between 20% and 40% of controllers stopped going to work daily in the 30 main airports since the beginning of the closure, a phenomenon that has worsened as the lack of income continues. The previous weekend it had already been qualified by the Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffyas the worst in terms of staffing since the beginning of the crisis, a situation that keeps the US air system under increasing pressure.
The FAA has been forced to take exceptional measures. Since last Friday, the institution ordered a progressive reduction of flights in the 40 airports with the highest traffic, starting with a 4% decrease in operations and projecting to reach 10% by November 14 for operational safety reasons. A record number was reached on Sunday, with nearly 10% of domestic flights canceled according to the analysis firm Cirium. The impact on users has been immediate: data from the specialized site FlightAware indicate that until 13:30 GMT on Monday, more than 1,666 flights canceled and 3,300 delayedwhile the previous day 2,950 flights did not take off and almost 10,800 suffered delays, consolidating the most critical period for the commercial aviation from January 2024.
The domino effect of the crisis has not been limited to numbers. The FAA announced the temporary closure of traffic general aviation —including private jets and business flights— at a dozen airports with serious staffing problems, including Chicago O’Hare and Reagan Washington National. This measure aims to prioritize business operations regular due to lack of personnel. Meanwhile, the extreme winter conditions continue to impact airport operations, especially in cities like Chicagowhere delays reached up to five hours, in addition to affecting other nerve centers such as Philadelphia, nashville and atlanta.
Some controllers, deprived of pay for more than a month, have chosen to be absent from their posts, a phenomenon that is explained—according to legislators from both parties—by the lack of institutional support for affected personnel. These positions contrast with the position of the president, whose demand for return has met with resistance and sparked debate in the political sphere. The situation has led to an average of 30 installations of air control reported staffing issues over recent weekends, which is nearly four times the level seen before the shutdown, according to an analysis by Associated Press.
In parallel, the Senate approved this Monday a bill to reopen the federal government, but the initiative remains pending approval of the House of Representatives. According to Transportation Secretary Duffy, flight cuts and operational restrictions will remain in place until the FAA see clear improvements in staffing and safety indicators. Duffy himself acknowledged not being able to specify when the restrictions imposed on the air operations.
Meanwhile, the FAA staff He faces his second period without receiving a salary, with uncertainty about the date on which the Government will pay the arrears. During the previous closing of 2019, the air traffic controllers They had to wait more than two months to recover their pending salary. The conjunction of staff shortage and adverse weather conditions maintains the prospect of an uncertain outlook for the American aviation in the short term.
