DISRUPTION

Shutdown Flight Cancellation Chaos Reaches New Peak

The upcoming holidays will exacerbate the impacts of air travel disruption.

Over 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide on Friday due to a shortage of air traffic controllers caused by the government shutdown. The controllers are currently being required to work without pay. Flight delays also averaged four hours on Friday in Washington, D.C. Just under four percent of overall U.S. flights were cancelled, with 194 airports being affected, according to the New York Times. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said cuts could jump to as high as 20 percent. A bill proposed twice by Republican Senator Ron Johnson on Friday would have paid federal workers during the shutdown. Democrats blocked it twice, with Senator Gary Peters saying it would leave “too much discretion up to President Trump.” United Airlines Senior Vice President Mike Hanna told the Today show that the impact is comparable to a small winter storm, but Thanksgiving will exacerbate the effects. “The closer we get to the holidays, obviously, the available seats will be less,” he said.