U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is warning of increased air traffic delays as the government shutdown becomes the second-longest in history and controllers face their first $0 paycheck tomorrow. This will come after the nation’s air traffic controllers received only a partial paycheck on October 14. In fact, FlightAware on Sunday logged 8,774 delays involving flights in the U.S.
Speaking during a press briefing with House of Representatives leaders last week, Duffy assured that work continues on air traffic modernization. He reiterated that the system is safe, “but it has to be massively rebuilt. We need a new system.” Duffy noted that he has pushed for $31.5 billion toward that effort but received a “down payment” of $12.5 billion to begin that work. “We have crafted our teams in a way that can keep that work moving forward. It doesn’t stop during the shutdown…that is still operational.”
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