Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy made clear the administration is considering all options to address the Federal Aviation Administration cuts made to flights across the country amid the ongoing government shutdown
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy revealed he is considering using air traffic controllers who are not certified in the correct air spaces to offer relief to airports amid widespread flight cancellations because of the ongoing government shutdown.
It comes as the Federal Aviation Administration began cancelling hundreds of flights Thursday to reduce traffic at the nation’s busiest airports starting Friday due to forced strains from the ongoing government shutdown. The cuts are intended to boost travel safety by relieving air traffic controllers who have expressed signs of strain due to shortages as the shutdown rages on with no end in sight.
The federal shutdown, which began Oct. 1, broke records as the longest in the nation’s history, as Democrats continue holding out in hopes of getting Republicans to make concessions to extend tax cuts for Affordable Care Act recipients that are used by millions.
READ MORE: Thanksgiving flights set to ‘slow to a trickle’ as Duffy warns it will only ‘get worse’READ MORE: Major NYC airport worst hit by flight cancellations as 500 flights can’t land
Duffy went on CNN over the weekend, assuring Americans that the administration is doing its best to address the issue, while blaming Democrats for creating the problem.
“I don’t want to see disruption for the American people. Pete Hegseth, Secretary of War, texted me yesterday and said, ‘I might have some air traffic controllers. If you could use them, I’m gonna offer them to you,'” Sean Duffy told CNN’s Jake Tapper Sunday morning.
“I don’t know that I can, Jake, because they’re not certified in the airspaces that we need them. But if I can, I’m going to use them.”
“Everyone in this administration, at the direction of President Trump, has said, ‘Minimize the pain on Americans.’ This is not political,” he said, going on to blame Democrats for the crisis.
“This is strictly safety, and I’m doing what I can in a mess that Democrats have put on my lap,” he continued. “Now, I’m trying to keep the American people safe and planes flying.”
Flight cancellations continue to rise after more than 790 flights slated to depart on Friday were cut from airline schedules, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks flight disruptions.
The FAA selected 40 “high volume” airports across more than two dozen states that will be impacted by the cuts. The reductions began Friday at 4% and will rise up to 10% by Nov. 14, the FAA said.
“With continued delays and unpredictable staffing shortages, which are driving fatigue, risk is further increasing, and the FAA is concerned with the system’s ability to maintain the current volume of operations,” the FAA order reads.
