FAA says U.S. flight cuts will stay at 6% as more ATCs come to work

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. government shutdown may be over but flight reductions at 40 major U.S. airports will remain at 6% instead of rising to 10% by the end of the week because more air traffic controllers are coming to work, officials said yesterday.

The flight cuts were implemented last week as more air traffic controllers were calling out of work, citing stress and the need to take on second jobs – leaving more control towers and facilities short-staffed. Air traffic controllers missed two paycheques during the impasse.

The Department of Transportation said the flight reduction decision was made on recommendations from the FAA’s safety team, after a “rapid decline” in controller callouts.

The 6% limit will stay in place while officials assess whether the air traffic system can safely return to normal operations, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said, although he did not provide a timeline.

“If the FAA safety team determines the trend lines are moving in the right direction, we’ll put forward a path to resume normal operations,” Duffy said in a statement.

Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said Wednesday that safety remains their top priority and that all decisions will be guided by data.

Delta struck an optimistic note about how much longer flight reductions would continue, saying in a statement the airline looked forward to bringing its “operation back to full capacity over the next few days.”

Since the restrictions took effect Nov. 7, more than 10,100 flights have been canceled, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware. The FAA originally planned to ramp up flight cuts from 4% to 10% at the 40 airports.

The FAA said that worrisome safety data showed flight reductions were needed to ease pressure on the aviation system and help manage worsening staffing shortages at its air traffic control facilities as flight disruptions began to pile up.

Duffy has declined to share the specific safety data that prompted the flight cuts. But at a news conference Tuesday at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, he cited reports of planes getting too close in the air, more runway incursions and pilot concerns about controllers’ responses.

The FAA’s list of 40 airports spans more than two dozen states and includes large hubs such as New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Chicago. The order requires all commercial airlines to make cuts at those airports.

Airlines for America, the trade group of U.S. airlines, posted on social media that it was grateful for the funding bill. It said reopening the government would allow U.S. airlines to restore operations ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday which is in about two weeks.

How long it will take for the aviation system to stabilize is unclear. The flight restrictions upended airline operations in just a matter of days. Many planes were rerouted and aren’t where they’re supposed to be. Airlines for America said that there would be residual effects for days.

The CEO of the U.S. Travel Association said essential federal workers like air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration workers must be paid if “Congress ever goes down this foolish path again” and there is a shutdown.

“America cannot afford another self-inflicted crisis that threatens the systems millions rely on every day,” Geoff Freeman said in a statement.

BY THE NUMBERS: THE SHUTDOWN’S TOLL ON U.S. AIR TRAVEL

America’s aviation system has strained under the weight of the longest government shutdown on record: thousands of flight cancellations, long delays at major airports and frustrated travellers nationwide in the U.S.

Here’s a closer look …

Major U.S. airports where all commercial airlines have been required to cancel flights since Nov. 7 under the FAA’s orders. The list spans more than two dozen states and includes large hubs such as New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Chicago.

Airports on the FAA’s list of 40 where the agency also expanded restrictions to limit business jets and many private flights.

1.9 million

Daily passengers who use the 40 airports where flights have been reduced, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

5.2 million

Passengers who have been affected by staffing-related delays or cancellations since the government shutdown began on Oct. 1, according to Airlines for America. The industry trade group represents Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines and JetBlue.

9,500

Flights cancelled between Nov. 7, the first day of the FAA-required cuts, and mid-day Nov. 12, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware.

The average number of air traffic control facilities that had static issues during the six weekends since the shutdown began on Oct. 1. That is almost four times the number on weekends this year before the shutdown, according to an AP analysis of operations plans sent through the Air Traffic Control System Command Center system.

US$10,000

How much President Donald Trump suggested air traffic controllers should receive as a bonus if they didn’t miss any days of work during the shutdown. Trump also threatened docking pay for those who haven’t stayed on the job.

US$285 million to $580 million

The daily U.S. economic impact had the FAA’s 10% cuts taken effect, according to Airlines for America, which said its estimate factors in reduced visitor spending, state and local tax revenue and spending across the broader economy.