The US government shutdown is beginning to bite into aviation and travel, as alarm bells ring over the growing costs of the lapse in funding.
The warnings come as US airlines hurry to comply with a new order from the Federal Aviation Administration, which imposed a 4 per cent reduction in flight capacity at major airports, citing safety concerns because of mounting pressure on air-traffic controllers and airport security workers. They are deemed as essential employees and must work during the government shutdown, although tens of thousands are doing so without pay.
More than 850 flights travelling into, out of and within the US were cancelled on Friday, according to tracker FlightAware. Separate data from aviation consultant Cirium showed 780 US flights – or 3 per cent – had been cancelled out of the 25,375 scheduled for Friday, which it described as a “very good on-time operational performance number”.
The cuts are set to increase to 6 per cent on Tuesday and then 10 per cent by November 14 if the shutdown is not resolved. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said those cuts could stretch to 15 or 20 per cent if the shutdown does not end “rela
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