A senior advisor to former President Trump has issued a stark warning: up to 20% of flights could face cancellations if the ongoing government shutdown continues, with disruptions already causing chaos at airports across the country.

On Friday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy cautioned that the number of flight cancellations could surge to one in five if the shutdown, now in its 38th day, isn’t resolved soon.

“If this shutdown doesn’t conclude in the near future, we risk more air traffic controllers not reporting for work,” Duffy explained during an interview on Fox News. “It’s a situation I hope we can avoid.”

By 6 p.m. on Friday, nearly 1,500 flights had been canceled, and 4,576 flights experienced delays either within the United States or on routes into or out of the country, according to data from Flight Aware.

Experts are concerned that the economic repercussions of these mandatory reductions are proving to be “far worse” than anticipated.

‘If the air travel thing goes south for another week or two,’ National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told Fox Business, ‘you could say that they would have at least a near-term downturn.’ 

The Federal Aviation Association started cuts today, slashing 4 percent of routes at the nation’s busiest airports.

The reductions, which impact all commercial airlines, will ramp up to 10 percent by Friday next week.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy (pictured) warned Friday that flight cancellations could spike to 20 percent if the government isn’t reopened soon, with the shutdown now dragging into its 38th day

As of 6pm Friday, nearly 1,500 flights had been canceled, with a staggering 4,576 delays within, into or out of the US 

Neil Lyon, who must fly from New Mexico to Houston for a cancer-related surgery early next week, faces uncertainty as Houston Hobby Airport – his planned departure point – is among 40 hubs cutting flights. 

‘It’s just adding what is unnecessary stress to a situation that’s already filled with legitimate stress,’ Lyon told CNN.

He and his wife have frantically lined up several backup plans – moving their flight up a day early and even booking a second ticket to Austin, with plans to drive the rest of the way to Houston if needed. 

But with hundreds of flights grounded and FAA staffing stretched thin, the couple has resigned themselves to making the 12-hour drive to Houston should both flights be canceled. 

‘What I’m worried about is getting to Houston in time for a procedure that’s been scheduled for quite some time and there’s some urgency,’ Lyon told the outlet.

‘I’m dealing with this, and I’m just thinking about the tens of thousands, or millions, who are dealing with other really serious circumstances that are impacted by what the situation is,’ he added.

‘I’m frustrated for myself, and I’m frustrated for millions of other people.’

Friday brought widespread disruption to all 40 major airports, including those in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, DC.

The Federal Aviation Association started cuts today, slashing 4 percent of routes at the nation’s busiest airports 

Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, that controllers are quitting ‘every day’ because of the historic Trump-era shutdown

Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said even if the government reopens soon, the chaos at airports could continue for a while.

He told CNN that controllers are quitting ‘every day’ because of the historic Trump-era shutdown.

Hundreds of FAA workers are unpaid, worn out, and some are taking second jobs or calling in sick amid the funding lapse, according to BBC News.

On top of that, the situation is driving young people away from the profession entirely. 

Duffy warned that the shutdown is wreaking havoc on recruitment, with countless air traffic controller positions still unfilled.

‘This makes it more difficult to get the best and the brightest young people to sign up to be air traffic controllers,’ Duffy told Fox.

‘And, again, after the shutdown is over and everyone stops covering it, I’m going to be the one that’s still dealing with trying to get young people in to take these great jobs,’ he added.

Sheri Perry, whose husband has tagged along on more than a dozen Red Cross deployments, fears volunteers won’t be able to respond quickly to the next disaster, as reported by CNN.

‘This is hurricane season and it could be the drop of the hat when there’s another disaster,’ she told the outlet.

With flight boards across the country constantly updating with delays and cancellations, some travelers are stretching their pockets thin by doubling up on flights.

Choreographer Lewis McClendon, 33, was set to fly from Miami to Baton Rouge on Friday when he got word that his connecting flight was canceled. Delta rebooked him, but that flight was canceled later that same evening.

‘For all my flights within the US, I’m just booking two flights per location,’ McClendon told CNN, adding that he has already spent more than $1,800 on buying extra plane tickets.

‘Thankfully, I’m able to financially afford that but I just can’t imagine other people in this situation that could not afford that option,’ he added.

This is a breaking news story.