US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned yesterday the government could force airlines to cut up to 20 per cent of flights if the shutdown did not end as US airlines yesterday scrambled to make unprecedented government-imposed reductions.
The Federal Aviation Administration mandated airlines yesterday cut 4pc of flights at 40 major airports because of a record-setting government shutdown before it rises to 10pc by November 14.
Duffy told reporters it was possible he could require 20pc cuts later. “I assess the data,” Duffy said. “ We’re going to make decisions based on what we see in the air space”
The cuts, which began at 6 am ET (1100 GMT), include about 700 flights from the four largest carriers - American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines - and are set to rise to 6pc on Tuesday and then 10pc by November 14 if the shutdown does not end.
The cuts don’t apply to international flights.
Separately, air traffic controller absences yesterday forced the Federal Aviation Administration to delay hundreds of flights at nine airports including in Atlanta, San Francisco, Houston, Phoenix, Washington and Newark. By 2 pm ET, there were more than 2,600 flight delays.
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom does not expect significant disruption for customers from initial government-ordered flight reductions, he said yesterday, warning that increased cuts would be “problematic.”
“This level of cancellation is going to grow over time and that’s something that is going to be problematic,” Isom told CNBC.
American told Reuters its 220 flight cancellations impacted 12,000 passengers and within a few hours re-accommodated a majority of them.
Cuts will be smaller over the weekend as scheduled flight volumes decline.
United Airlines said half of its impacted customers were able to be rebooked within four hours of their original departure time. United, which canceled 184 flights, will cut 168 on Saturday and 158 on Sunday.
Duffy on Wednesday had announced plans to cut 10pc of flights but said yesterday the “safety team said that could be even more disruptive” and instead opted to phase them starting at 4pc.
Duffy said safety data was behind the move, including incidents of planes not maintaining separation and ground incursions.
“We’ve had more complaints from pilots that have said, well, the controller is less responsive to me, or controllers seem to be more stressed,” Duffy said. “The numbers are going in the wrong direction.”
The FAA did not publish the list of airports impacted until 7:30 pm ET Thursday – less than 12 hours before the cuts took effect.
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