Airports Face Delays Amid Staff Shortages Due to Government Shutdown

Amid the ongoing government shutdown, airports across the US are facing significant delays due to staffing shortages as air traffic controllers work without pay for the third straight day.

The Details: Airports have seen an increase in sick leaves among air traffic controllers since the government shutdown began, resulting in understaffed airports delaying and canceling flights. A White House memo suggested that President Donald Trump may not grant backpay to some federal employees, which Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said is contributing to stress and potential safety concerns. “When they come to work, I want them to think about the departures and arrivals of airplanes. I want to make sure they keep Americans safe and airplanes safe,” said Duffy, “but the consistent message from these controllers was they’re not just thinking about the airspace and the jobs they have to do.”

Which Airports Are Affected? The Federal Aviation Administration reported staffing shortages at airports in Boston, Burbank, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Nashville, Newark, Philadelphia, and Phoenix at the time of writing.

Responses from Officials: Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on X, “Thanks, @realDonaldTrump! Burbank Airport has ZERO air traffic controllers from 4:15pm to 10pm today because of YOUR government shutdown.” Duffy posted a meme on X that Breitbart (Right bias) described as “pointing fun at Democrats who prioritized healthcare for illegal migrants over air traffic controllers in their shutdown.”

How the Media Covered It: The Hill (Center bias) listed the airports experiencing staff shortages and the resultant flight delays. It also quoted the president of Local 1040 of the American Federation of Government Employees at Dallas Fort-Worth talking about the impact of delayed pay for employees, saying, “As you get longer into the shutdown, like the one back in 2018, 2019, folks literally didn’t have the funds to go to work.” Breitbart highlighted social media posts from politicians on both sides of the spectrum and described Newsom as “far-left.” NBC News (Lean Left bias) noted that “some of the delays might be due to poor weather conditions on the East Coast.”

Revised by the AllSides staff (of humans) after a first draft from our custom AI. Learn more. Support our mission. Suggest an improvement to this summary.