Airport delays could worsen as air traffic controllers continue to work without pay, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said this week.
“I can’t guarantee you that your flight is going to be on time,” Duffy said at a press briefing, according to Axios. “I can’t guarantee you that your flight’s not going to be cancelled. It’s going to depend on our air traffic controllers coming in to work every single day.”
Controllers were last paid at the end of September; due to the government shutdown that began Oct. 1, they will not receive this month’s paychecks on Oct. 28 unless Congress agrees on a plan to reopen the government.
In previous shutdowns, controllers engaged in coordinated “sick outs” to pressure lawmakers to resolve the crisis and get payrolls flowing again.
This week, a group of Republican lawmakers introduced a bill calling for air traffic controllers to be paid even if the shutdown continues. However, Duffy said that there is “no pot of money” that can be drawn upon to pay controllers.
About 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers are currently working without pay.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, about 75 percent of domestic flights operated on time between January and July of 2025. Statistics are not yet available for August, September or October, which would show the impact of the shutdown on air travel.
The Federal Aviation Administration reported delays in flights from Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta and Newark that the agency attributed to controller shortages. But a report by Cirium, an aviation data analytics company, did not find any spike in flight delays during the first 17 days of the shutdown, USA Today reported.
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