Are you planning on travelling on Thanksgiving? Well, let me tell you the current government shutdown is causing serious issues in the aviation industry. As the shutdown is in its third week, airports face more chaos, and thousands of passengers could suffer flight delays or cancellations during one of the busiest travelling periods of the year.
The situation worries many Americans, since they fear this government shutdown will cause huge interruptions right before holidays. So, let’s find out more about what’s going on.
Government shutdown and travelling
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported there aren’t enough staff among air traffic controllers, which is generating many delays. Due to most of the government being shut, many federal employees are not working or they do it without receiving their salary. So, about 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 officers from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) still work without being paid.
Many of them were working mandatory overtime before the government shutdown had started. Now, with long hours and no pay, workers are experiencing higher levels of stress (as it’s normal).
As a result, the main airports of the country are experiencing delays, and the airlines have difficulties to follow their timetables. It’s estimated that about 20% of flights from American Airlines and Southwest Airlines have been affected.
Worries about safety
Experts warn this government shutdown could put aviation safety at risk. Air traffic controllers are in charge of guiding the planes during take offs and landings, maintaining safe distances, and avoiding collisions. However, when these workers are exhausted, overloaded, and without receiving their salaries; it’s obvious that more mistakes are going to happen. Many people fear that stress and economic instability affect concentration and efficiency and, therefore, increasing the chances of flight issues.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association criticized the political stalemate, saying that workers have become “pawns” in the fight between Democrats and Republicans. These employees were already facing lack of staff and an overload of work before the government shutdown. Now, several workers are considering looking for another job and leaving this one so that they could cover their expenses. If this happens it would mean a worsening of the staff issue…
TSA officers
The problem doesn’t affect just air traffic controllers, TSA officers are also affected by this situation. More than 50,000 officers are still working without receiving their salary due to the government shutdown. This means that safety queues can be way slower and longer, and some security checkpoints might be forced to close if officers can no longer afford to keep working without pay.
I mean, continuing working without getting paid in these conditions is putting extra pressure on workers, affecting the normal functioning of airports.
Thanksgiving
This is one of the moments of the year with more flights in the U.S. Millions of people take a flight to gather with their families, but this year the government shutdown threatens to transform this period into a nightmare of delays, cancellations, and overcrowded airports.
Political conflict
The government shutdown starts because Democrats and Republicans don’t reach an agreement about the federal budget. So, until they do, many government agencies remain closed or functioning with limited resources. Among the affected agencies we find the FAA and the TSA, whose employees must continue working or stay at home without getting paid.
If the Congress doesn’t end the government shutdown soon, the situation could get worse… This crisis shows how the aviation transport functioning depends on the job of thousands of public workers and how the government shutdown can directly affect the daily life of millions of people who only want to travel and gather with their loved ones.