Air Traffic Controller Shortages Continue to Cause Flight Delays Amid Shutdown

The FAA said most US flights departed on time, but shortages caused significant delays.

A traffic control tower at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles on July 1, 2025. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

A lack of air traffic control staff continued to delay flights as of late on Oct. 7, due to the federal government shutdown.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced staffing issues in Nashville, Boston, Dallas, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

Additionally, air traffic control centers in Atlanta, Houston, and the Dallas-Fort Worth area were affected.

More than 3,000 flights were delayed on the second day of the staffing shortage, according to flight tracking data.

The FAA is working to slow the number of flights arriving at Chicago O'Hare to compensate for an average 41-minute delay, and similar staffing problems are impacting the Atlanta Air Route Traffic Control Center.

Flights were delayed an average of 30 minutes at Newark Liberty International Airport, which caters to New York City travelers, while Nashville International Airport air traffic control and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport are also experiencing delays due to staffing shortages.

As the government shutdown reached the one-week mark, union leaders for the controllers and airport security screeners have stated that the issue could get worse.

Real-time flight impacts can be found at fly.faa.gov.

While air traffic disruptions were reported starting on Oct. 6 in Burbank, California, Newark, New Jersey, and Denver, according to the FAA, around 92 percent of the more than 23,600 domestic flights from U.S. airports took off on time.

Weather conditions are also partially to blame for delays.

Both political parties have said that the other is to blame for the shutdown.

Around 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers are still required to come to work during a government shutdown, even without being paid.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said during an Oct. 7 press conference at Newark airport that the number of air traffic controllers calling in sick had risen slightly since the government shutdown began last week. 

“You'll see delays come from that,” said Duffy, who spoke with reporters alongside Nick Daniels, the president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, which represents nearly 20,000 air traffic controllers.

Duffy noted that controllers will miss their first paycheck on Oct. 14 if the shutdown stretches on. “Some areas, there’s been a 50 percent reduction in some of the staffing,” he said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said the same day he’s open to legislation that would ensure military members and air traffic controllers don’t miss their next paychecks.

Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) spoke about the impact of the shutdown, with Johnson saying, “We’re monitoring that day by day. I’m certainly open to that. We’ve done it in the past. We want to make sure our troops are paid.”

However, one day later, Johnson said the House would not consider a standalone measure to continue paying the military during the government shutdown. He said that his chamber already voted to keep paying the military, border patrol, TSA, and “everybody else” weeks ago when they voted on the continuing resolution, but “Every Democrat in the House except one voted against it.”

Reuters and Jacob Burg contributed to this report.