Travelers flying to or from Los Angeles, Ontario and San Diego international airports could experience flight delays or cancellations starting Friday as the U.S. Department of Transportation began imposing cutbacks in flight capacity at 40 major airports nationally.
The cuts are the result of the ongoing federal government shutdown, which has led to staffing issues among air-traffic controllers. The controllers are considered essential workers who are instructed to continue working despite the closure, and not receiving paychecks. But U.S. Department of Transportation officials said the issue has led to "staffing triggers" at air traffic facilities nationally, leading to "strain on the system."
The federal agency reported 2,740 flight delays last weekend, with the situation only expected to worsen without a resolution to the government shutdown.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday that capacity would be reduced at 40 high-volume airports beginning Friday. According to a DOT statement issued Thursday night, flight capacity at the affected airports will be cut by 4% beginning Friday, ramping up to 6% on Tuesday, 8% next Thursday and 10% by next Friday.
The Federal Aviation Administration is also limiting commercial space launches and reentries to the hours of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. local time. Parachute operations and photo missions near affected airports were also being prohibited.
Airports in Los Angeles, Ontario and San Diego will all be among those impacted by the capacity cuts, but airfields not among the 40 on the list could still see ripple-effect impacts on flight operations.
Los Angeles International Airport is among the top five busiest airfields in the nation.
"My department has many responsibilities, but our number one job is safety," Duffy said in a statement Thursday night. "This isn't about politics -- it's about assessing the data and alleviating building risk in the system as controllers continue to work without pay. It's safe to fly today, and it will continue to be safe to fly next week because of the proactive actions we are taking."
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Craig and Yoli got to LAX early because they were concerned about their flight.
“I'm very worried about it,” Yoli told KNX News’ Jon Baird. “We actually stayed at the Hyatt Hotel just to make sure that we were going to be here early enough in case of any delays.”
Andrew and Summer were also worried about their travel plans.
“I'm more worried about getting back than our flight getting canceled right now,” Summer said.
One man told Baird he wasn’t concerned about his flight to and from Hawaii.
“We're going to Hawaii, so the plane goes that way,” he said.
According to the air-travel tracking website FlightAware, 853 flights within, into or out of the United States had been canceled as of mid-morning Friday, compared to 202 all day Thursday.
At LAX, a total of 54 flight cancellations were reported as of mid- morning Friday, along with 90 flight delays. There were a total of nine cancellations all day on Thursday, according to FlightAware.
At Ontario International, eight flights had been canceled as of Friday morning, up from none on Thursday.
In San Diego, 27 flights had been canceled as of Friday morning, compared to two cancellations throughout the day Thursday.
Airlines have been issuing alerts to passengers to be aware of possible flight impacts.
United Airlines posted a message on its website stating, "We're making updates to our schedule and will let you know if your flight is affected as soon as possible, but anyone flying between Nov. 6 and 13 can request a refund or reschedule for free."
Southwest Airlines posted a notice saying "the vast majority" of its customers will not be affected, but said anyone with flights booked through Wednesday can adjust their travel plans at no cost, "or receive a refund if they choose not to travel, regardless of whether their flight is affected."
"We will communicate directly with affected customers as soon as possible," according to Southwest.
Delta Air Lines also advised customers of flight reductions, and provided guidance for travelers about how they can change or cancel their flights without any financial penalties.
Frontier Airlines stated that it expects most of its flights to operate as planned, but it will communicate with passengers whose travel plans may be impacted by the cuts.
"Customers whose flights are canceled or delayed for more than three hours (domestic flights) or six hours (international flights) are able to rebook or to request a refund," according to the airline.
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