Airports report staffing shortages amid shutdown

Multiple airports reported a shortage of air traffic controllers Monday, as the government shutdown nears one week.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), in publicly available advisories, said Hollywood Burbank Airport, Denver International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey experienced delays on Monday due to the shortages. 

Hollywood Burbank Airport, near Los Angeles, had no controllers from 4:15 p.m. to 10 p.m. local time. At 6:44 p.m. local time on Monday, the airport posted on social platform X that “operations are continuing.”

The Hill has reached out to Denver International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport for an update on their operations.

Air traffic controllers, considered essential, are required to work without pay during the shutdown. In January 2019, during the last government shutdown, an increased number of air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees took sick days, resulting in travel disruptions along the East Coast.

In its shutdown contingency plan, the Department of Transportation (DOT) said that over 11,000 FAA employees — roughly a quarter of the agency’s workforce — would be furloughed. The Trump administration noted, though, that over 13,000 air traffic controllers would remain on the job and hiring and training of controllers would continue.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at a press conference at Newark Airport on Monday that the country’s air traffic control system is being harmed by the government shutdown. He added that since the lapse in funding began last Wednesday, there has been a slight increase in controllers calling out sick. 

“They’re not just now thinking about the airspace,” Duffy said. “They’re thinking about, ‘Am I going to get a paycheck?’”

The Hill has also reached out to the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), which represents nearly 20,000 air traffic controllers, engineers and flight safety workers, for comment.

At Monday’s press conference alongside Duffy, NATCA President Nick Daniels called on Congress to end the government shutdown.