The ongoing government shutdown has resulted in yet another major air traffic control tower ceasing operations, leaving no personnel to manage plane movements due to a lack of staff. 

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that Nashville International Airport is set to encounter this issue starting at 5pm ET on Tuesday. The problem arises from an insufficient number of air traffic controllers available to run the tower. 

Nashville’s air traffic approach control is expected to remain dark until after midnight, resulting in major flight delays and ground stops.

According to the FAA’s website, the ground delay has already backed up flights by more than two hours at the airport.

Nashville International (BNA) noted that the FAA told officials this reduction in manpower ‘will remain in effect until further notice.’

Officials at BNA have notified all airlines about the anticipated slowdown and have advised travelers to verify their flight status with their respective airlines before heading to the airport. 

A dozen facilities saw staffing shortages on Monday, including Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, where Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy claimed that many air traffic control workers were calling out sick.

‘If we see there are issues in the tower that are affecting controllers’ ability to effectively control the airspace, we’ll reduce the rate, and you’ll see more delays or you might see a cancellation,’ Duffy said.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that Nashville International Airport (pictured) will face a ground delay starting at 5pm ET

Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (pictured) has also experienced staffing shortages and a ground delay has been issued for Tuesday night

Another major hub facing a travel nightmare because of the government shutdown is Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.

The FAA has also announced a ground delay there starting at 7pm ET and lasting until midnight.

According to Axios, O’Hare has been experiencing shortages and is expected to be understaffed in their air traffic control tower throughout most of the day.

O’Hare is one of the busiest airports in the US and the world, handling over 80 million passengers annually and thousands of flights daily.

Flight Aware’s ‘Misery Map’ helps flyers track the number of delayed flights at US airports, and which travel hubs have been particularly impacted by the federal shutdown.

So far, O’Hare has dealt with the most delays on Tuesday afternoon, postponing over 60 flights since 2pm ET.

The new travel headaches come less than a day after air traffic control towers at Hollywood Burbank Airport in California were left unmanned for hours due to the ongoing shutdown.

The Daily Mail asked the White House for comment on the situation on Monday and received an automatic reply putting responsibility for the shutdown on Democrats.

Nashville International (BNA) revealed on Tuesday that the FAA told officials this reduction in manpower ‘will remain in effect until further notice’

‘Due to staff shortages resulting from the Democrat Shutdown, the typical 24/7 monitoring of this press inbox may experience delays,’ it read. 

So far on Tuesday, cancellations have been kept to a minimum nationwide, with only 61 flights into and out of the US being cancelled.

President of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, Nick Daniels, called for an end to the government shutdown as soon as possible during Duffy’s news conference.

NATCA represents over 20,000 air traffic controllers and claims that many of its members have been working 10-hour shifts, six days a week.

The shutdown has put these vital airport workers under further strain, furloughing support staff and suspending support programs.

Some major airports were already dealing with staffing shortages before Congress failed to pass a new spending bill on October 1.

That includes Newark Liberty, which has been plagued by staffing issues and dangerous radar blackouts this year.