FAA Announces 10% Reduction in Flights at 40 Major Airports Across US Because of Shutdown
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced Wednesday that flight capacity would be reduced by ten percent at 40 major airports across the U.S. due to the impacts the government shutdown was having on air traffic controllers.
The ongoing shutdown has brought widespread challenges, with food stamps and other benefits on hold, crucial data reports not being produced, and many federal employees going without pay — including the air traffic controllers who serve an invaluable role for flight safety.
During a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said certain measures would be necessary to address the “pressure that is building in the system” on air traffic controllers — already short-staffed, but now working without pay for weeks.
One key step they were taking, Duffy said, was a ten percent reduction in capacity at 40 major airports across the U.S., again acknowledging that this would lead to “additional disruptions” and “frustration.”
The decisions about what flights to reduce were based on data, Duffy explained — “not based on what airline travels has more flights out of what location,” but “where is the pressure” on air traffic controllers.
Duffy then introduced FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford to discuss more details.
Bedford said that the data was showing “issues of fatigue” among air traffic controllers and other troubling signs from “voluntary safety disclosure reports.”
“As we slice the data more granularly,” said Bedford, “we are seeing pressures built in a way that we do not feel will — if we allow it to go unchecked — will allow us to continue to tell the public that we operate the safest airline system in the world.”
Bedford emphasized they wanted to “try to be proactive” and would “implement measures with commercial airline industry partners” as well as “restrictions on space launches.”
Air traffic controllers “have been working fastidiously for the last five weeks with this huge burden over their head, of lack of compensation,” Bedford continued. “We are starting to see some evidence that that fatigue is building in the system in ways we feel we need to work towards relieving some of that pressure.”
Duffy and Bedford then took questions from reporters.
Duffy confirmed that the restrictions would start Friday morning, and Bedford said that they would be working with the airlines on the “implementation” of this plan, seeking to have them “reduce their schedules pro rata through the day,” but it would be “a radical reduction across these 40 markets over the next 48 hours.”
Another reporter remarked that this would involve about “3,500, 4,000 flights,” a “really significant number,” and asked “how do you think the airspace system will handle that dramatic reduction in such a short period of time?”
Bedford replied that they saw “pressures building in these 40 markets” and “cannot ignore it, and we won’t wait for a safety problem to truly manifest itself, when early indicators are telling us we can take action today to prevent things from deteriorating,” but “additional measures” could be necessary if the pressure continues.
Watch the clip above via Fox News.
