A traveller checks the flight information board as others walk through the terminal at Baltimore/Washington International Airport on Thursday. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled in at the busiest U.S. airports because of the government shutdown. (Stephanie Scarbrough/The Associated Press)
U.S. airlines began cancelling hundreds of flights on Thursday as the Federal Aviation Administration sought to reduce traffic at the country’s busiest airports because of the government shutdown.
More than 760 flights had been cut from Friday’s airline schedules, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks flight disruptions, by late Thursday.
The 40 airports selected by the FAA span more than two dozen states and include hubs such as Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles and Charlotte, N.C., according to a list distributed to the airlines. In some metropolitan areas, including New York, Houston, Chicago and Washington, multiple airports will be impacted.
The FAA said in its official order published Thursday evening that the reductions will start at four per cent on Friday and ramp up to 10 per cent by Nov. 14. They are to be in effect between 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time and impact all commercial airlines.
The reductions are meant to maintain safety as air traffic controllers exhibit signs of strain during the shutdown. It also comes as the Trump administration is ramping up pressure on Democrats in Congress to end the shutdown.
“With continued delays and unpredictable staffing shortages, which are driving fatigue, risk is further increasing, and the FAA is concerned with the system’s ability to maintain the current volume of operations,” the order reads.
Air traffic controllers have been working without pay during the shutdown, which began Oct. 1, and have been increasingly taking sick days. Most controllers work mandatory overtime six days a week.
Forty U.S. airports to reduce flights over government shutdown
Airports in 40 U.S. cities like New York, Atlanta and Los Angeles will have flights reduced following an order from the Federal Aviation Administration to cut traffic by four per cent on Friday, to ease the pressure on unpaid air traffic controllers during the government shutdown.
Hours before the reductions went into place, airlines were scrambling to figure out where to cut. American Airlines said it reduced its schedule at the listed airports by four per cent from Friday through Monday, about 220 cancellations each day, and would increase from there to the 10 per cent target. The carrier said its international schedule was expected to remain untouched.
The restrictions also apply to a subset of smaller carriers that operate scheduled charter flights. International flights do not have to be reduced, according to the FAA.
Some airlines planned to focus on slashing routes to and from small- and medium-size cities.
“This is going to have a noticeable impact across the U.S. air transportation system,” industry analyst Henry Harteveldt said.
Air traffic controllers talk with pilots inside the control tower at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles on June 24, 2016. (Bob Riha Jr./Reuters)
The flight reductions just weeks before the busy holiday season prompted some travellers to change their plans or look at other options.
Fallon Carter cancelled her Friday flight from New York to Tampa, where she planned to spend the weekend at the beach. She was worried about making it back to Long Island to be a bridesmaid at her best friend’s wedding.
“I don’t know if I get there, will I get home?” Carter said.
Shuffling schedules
Airlines said they would try to minimize impact on customers, some of whom will see weekend travel plans disrupted with little notice.
United, Delta and American were among carriers that said they would offer refunds to passengers who opt not to fly, even if they purchased non-refundable tickets.
The head of Frontier Airlines recommended that travellers buy backup tickets with another airline to avoid being stranded.
The cuts could also disrupt package deliveries because two airports with major distribution centres are on the list — FedEx operates at the airport in Memphis, Tenn., and UPS in Louisville, Ky., the site of this week’s deadly cargo plane crash.
The cuts could affect as many as 1,800 flights, or upward of 268,000 passengers, per day, according to an estimate from Cirium, an aviation analytics firm.
Airlines are used to dealing with cancelling thousands of flights on short notice during severe weather, but these cuts will last indefinitely until safety data improves.
The shutdown is putting unnecessary strain on the system and damaging confidence in the U.S. air travel experience, said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman.
Kelly Matthews, who lives in Flat Rock, Mich., and flies every week, says she cancelled most of her upcoming trips and understands why federal airport employees have stopped showing up.
“You can’t expect people to go in to work when they’re not getting a paycheque for the continuation of over a month now,” she said.
“I mean it’s not a matter of them not wanting to do the job — but you can’t afford to pay for gas, your day care and everything else.”
A passenger stands by a screen showing delayed flights due to the U.S. government shutdown at San Francisco International Airport on Thursday. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
