Delays spread to major airports across the country, as the government shutdown impacts travelers

Alexandra Skores, Pete Muntean, Aaron Cooper, CNN

Washington (CNN) — There would not be enough air traffic controllers in the tower at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport Tuesday night, the Federal Aviation Administration warned. In Nashville, so many controllers have stayed home, the facility - which guides planes into and out of the airport - is closing.

Now, after more than a week of the government shutdown, same scenarios are unfolding at FAA offices across the country, with ripple effects hitting flights almost everywhere.

The approach and departure facilities for Houston, Newark and Las Vegas did not have enough controllers working for at least part of Tuesday evening, along with the facilities that handle planes in the Boston, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Dallas areas, FAA operations plans noted.

Houston’s two major airports, Hobby and George Bush Intercontinental Airport, were both expected to see ground delays due to staffing shortage.

The aviation problems come as Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says more controllers are calling out sick. Like Transportation Security Administration officers, air traffic controllers are considered essential employees and must work without pay during the shutdown.

Organized job actions like strikes or sickouts are prohibited by federal law, but since air traffic control staffing is so tight, a small number of employees taking unscheduled time off can be enough to cause problems.

Tuesday’s staffing shortages

Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport was expected to operate without a full complement of controllers in the air traffic control tower for nine hours Tuesday night. The airport is one of the busiest in the country, with more than 1000 flights a day. Early Tuesday evening ground delays for flights headed to O’Hare averaged 41 minutes.

In Nashville, the approach facility, which guides planes into and out of the airport, had to shut down for five hours Tuesday night. Flights heading to the airport had to contact a regional air traffic control center in Memphis to enter the airspace. Ground delays for flights headed to Nashville were expected to average two hours Tuesday night.

The problems are similar to what happened Monday at Hollywood Burbank International Airport in California, where the entire tower was forced to shut down.

Controllers worried about how they will make ends meet

Controllers have not yet missed a paycheck, but continue to worry about what happens when they do, Duffy said Tuesday.

“This is their living. They’re concerned now if they don’t get their paychecks, how do I pay my mortgage? How do I pay my car payment? What do I do to put food on the table?” he said on Fox News.

The next payday is October 14, but unless the government reopens before then, controllers will only be paid for time worked before the shutdown. If government operations have not resumed, October 28 would be the first scheduled payday controllers aren’t paid at all.

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association says the repercussions of just a small number of controllers calling in sick show how understaffed and fragile the air traffic control system is.

“We are critically staffed with unreliable equipment, and we deal with these issues, and it’s a part of the resiliency and the redundancy that we advocate for, of needing that in the system,” said Nick Daniels, NATCA president, in an interview with CNN Tuesday. “We can work with the FAA to address the issues when they come up, make a plan, and ultimately ensure the safety of the flying public. These types of scenarios aren’t a new creation; they are a reality that air traffic controllers face day in and day out.”

Controllers call out

The Department of Transportation has reported an uptick in air traffic controllers calling out sick since the federal government shutdown almost a week ago, while the union representing them has disavowed any coordinated work actions.

“There’s controllers that have called up sick, and we’re tracking it,” Duffy said on Monday.

NATCA, which represents nearly 20,000 controllers, engineers and other aviation professionals, discouraged controllers from calling in sick to protest the shutdown.

“We must also recognize that in the current political climate, federal employees are under heightened scrutiny,” the union said in a message to members on its website. “We cannot stress enough that it is essential to avoid any actions that could reflect poorly on you, our Union, or our professions.”

“What happens is people get anxious, people get nervous, and sometimes there’s abuse of sick leave,” said Mary Schiavo, CNN transportation analyst.

Schiavo investigated some of these cases during her time as DOT inspector general.

“In the federal government, if you’re out for sick leave for more than three days, you have to have a doctor’s note,” Schiavo said. “If they’re suspicious, they can require you go to the doctor. So, taking sick leave when you’re not sick is always a bad idea, which is why their controller’s group has called for people not to abuse sick leave. Go in and do your job.”

Despite this, Daniels said these call-outs are not “abnormal,” given the critical staffing the FAA already sees.

“This pressure, this stress is an unnecessary distraction, this leading to fatigue - all these factors are real things that we’re having to face and issues that we’re working with the FAA on day in and day out,” Daniels said.

Pilots use ‘chat line’ to coordinate takeoffs and landings

When the air traffic controllers scheduled to work in the tower in Burbank, California, stayed home Monday, control of the airport fell to the pilots themselves, eliminating one layer of safety.

Flights used a Common Traffic Advisory Frequency, known as CTAF, to announce intentions and positions of their aircraft. It’s a way for pilots to communicate when no tower is present, but it is most commonly used at much smaller airports.

“At 4:15 local, the tower will be closed for staffing,” the Burbank controller announced on the radio recorded by LiveATC.net, as they prepared to cease operations.

“What happens is the pilots have to act like general aviation pilots – pilots who fly without air traffic control,” Schiavo said. “They can do it, but you have to use a communications line that’s sort of like a common chat line.”

Daniels, the union president, said his controllers have dealt with a woefully understaffed air traffic control system for years.

“Burbank tower having to go ATC Zero tonight isn’t something that’s abnormal, an issue with staffing at Nashville or other places, is not a rarity,” he said. “These are things that we deal in, day in and day out.”

Monday, pilots in Burbank had to get on the radio and make sure they stayed a safe distance away from other aircraft, without the help of controllers, according to audio from LiveATC.net.

“Southwest 1591, we’re about to cross runway eight on (taxiway) alpha and then we’ll take a left turn on (taxiway) Delta,” a Boeing 737 pilot announced to anyone who was listening.

Instead of pilots communicating with air traffic control, they must coordinate their position with other pilots on the frequency to safely perform maneuvers or approaches.

“Burbank traffic, FedEx 1805 heavy is descending to 9,000 feet,” a cargo pilot approaching the airport said, according to the LiveATC.net recording.

The FAA recommends pilots of inbound traffic monitor and communicate on the designated CTAF from 10 miles to landing.

“It’s doable but it adds a margin of danger,” Schiavo said. “It’s not as safe as having full air traffic control.”

Experts compare it to the difference between having a crossing guard at an intersection versus a stop sign.

Southern California TRACON, a facility located in San Diego, took over some other aspects of the Burbank tower’s responsibilities, including clearing aircraft into the airspace.

About 37 flights took off and 33 landed during the nearly six hours the Burbank tower was shut down, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware. To maintain a margin for safety, CTAF requires more time and space between planes, which resulted in more than 2 and a half hours of delays for Burbank flights Monday.

Only the air traffic control tower in Burbank closed Monday night, but 11 other Federal Aviation Administration facilities saw staffing shortages that night. The control towers in Phoenix and Denver had so-called “staffing triggers” reported in the public FAA operations plan. Other facilities that handle air traffic around airports in Newark, New Jersey; Jacksonville, Florida; Chicago, Washington, DC, and Indianapolis were also short-staffed.

This story has been updated.

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