Hollywood Burbank Airport in Los Angeles will have no air traffic control staff for nearly six hours on Monday evening, as the effects of the US government shutdown rippled across the country.
From 4.15pm until 10pm the Federal Aviation Administration anticipates there will be no air traffic controllers in their tower, although the FAA has said it is trying to bring in staffing sooner than that, according to ABC News.
Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must still turn up for work during the shutdown. They are not being paid and controllers are set to miss their first paycheck on 14 October.
Transportation secretary Sean Duffy said that at times, air traffic staffing has been cut by 50% in some areas since the shutdown started last week.
The FAA said air traffic control staffing issues are affecting flights at numerous airports including Newark, Phoenix, Denver, Las Vegas and Burbank.
Delays will result from the reduced staffing, Duffy said, adding that if sick calls increase, air traffic flow will be cut to a rate that maintains air safety.
Outgoing flights from the Hollywood Burbank airport were delayed an average of an hour and 51 minutes as of 5.30pm, according to the FAA, with the maximum delay reported at two hours and 35 minutes. The FAA report noted the tower had zero air traffic controllers and staffing was listed as a condition of the delays.
Although the air control tower is unmanned, Southern California Tracon (Terminal Radar Approach Control) will control the air traffic in the airport’s airspace, the FAA said. That facility provides air traffic control for arriving and departing flights in the region.
California governor Gavin Newsom was quick to blame Donald Trump for the staffing shortage. In a social media post, Newsom wrote: “Thanks, @realDonaldTrump! Burbank Airport has ZERO air traffic controllers from 4:15pm to 10pm today because of YOUR government shutdown.”
Duffy and the president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association spoke at a press conference at Newark Liberty international airport to discuss the effects of the shutdown. The airport is one of three serving the heavily Democratic-leaning New York metropolitan area and is a major United Airlines hub.
Duffy noted controllers are worried. “They’re thinking about, am I going to get a paycheck?” Duffy said, adding that some are asking themselves: “Do I have to take a second job and drive Uber when I’m already exhausted from doing a job that’s already stressful?”
The union on Monday reminded workers that “participating in a job action could result in removal from federal service” and that it was illegal.
“It is more important than ever that we rise to the occasion and continue delivering the consistent, high-level of public service we provide every day,” the union told members. “We cannot stress enough that it is essential to avoid any actions that could reflect poorly on you, our union, or our professions.”
In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of absences by controllers and Transportation Security Administration officers rose as workers missed paychecks, extending checkpoint wait times at some airports. Authorities were forced to slow air traffic in New York, which put pressure on lawmakers to quickly end the standoff.
