With the government shutdown dragging into its fifth week, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy cautioned that chaos in America’s airports is only beginning. Speaking Sunday on CBS News’s “Face the Nation” with Margaret Brennan, Duffy offered a bleak outlook as unpaid air traffic controllers struggle to keep the nation’s aviation system functioning.
“I think the real consequence is, what kind of rolling delays do you have throughout the system, right?” Duffy said, explaining that the effects are already visible. “We’ve seen problems at L.A., in Dallas, in D.C., Boston, Atlanta. And so I think it’s only going to get worse.”
His warning came as travelers faced mounting frustrations nationwide. The Federal Aviation Administration and NYC Emergency Management reported hours-long holdups at major airports, including nearly four hours of ground delays and a full ground stop at Newark Liberty International Airport — one of the busiest in the country.
The FAA said staffing shortages have spread across the system, affecting Los Angeles International Airport, San Diego International Airport, and other major hubs, many of which were reporting one-hour delays by Sunday evening.
The situation has escalated at a particularly precarious time, with Thanksgiving just weeks away — traditionally one of the heaviest travel periods of the year.
Duffy assured the public that aviation safety remains the government’s top concern, saying that operations would halt entirely if conditions became unsafe due to sick calls or staff shortages. “We’re not going to let that happen,” he promised, even as he acknowledged the mounting strain.
“We don’t have the best equipment in our towers and centers for air traffic control. But we have the safest airspace, we have the most efficient airspace because we have the best controllers in the world that work our skies and keep our people safe. They deserve a paycheck,” Duffy said.
Only weeks earlier, Duffy had hinted that air traffic controllers refusing to report for duty could face termination. On Sunday, however, his tone shifted dramatically as he expressed empathy for their financial hardship.
“They don’t make a lot of money, and they’re now confronted; they haven’t had a paycheck for over a month. They’re confronted with a decision: do I put food on my kids’ table, do I put gas in the car, do I pay my rent, or do I go to work and not get paid?” Duffy said.
“I’m not going to fire air traffic controllers … They need support, they need money, they need a paycheck. They don’t need to be fired,” he continued, underscoring the human cost of the prolonged shutdown.
The standoff in Washington, which began on October 1, has brought vital services to a standstill — disrupting travel, delaying food assistance, and leaving federal workers nationwide without pay as the crisis grinds on.
WATCH:
{Matzav.com}
