NEW YORK – As the government shutdown appears to be drawing to a close, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has cautioned that the chaos gripping airports across the nation is unlikely to ease immediately.

“Once the shutdown ends, it won’t be an instant fix for air traffic,” Duffy explained. “Bringing more air traffic controllers back on board to manage the skies will be a challenging process, so travelers can expect delays to persist long after the government resumes operations.”

Air traffic cuts to hit 10% by Friday

On Monday morning, FlightAware reported over 1,000 flight delays affecting travel within, into, or out of the United States, alongside more than 1,500 flight cancellations. The situation was even more dire on Sunday, with over 10,000 delays and upwards of 3,200 cancellations.

In response to the ongoing issues, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implemented a 4% reduction in daily flights last week. This figure is projected to increase to 6% by Tuesday at the 40 busiest airports across the country.