Aviation experts assert that air travel remains safe during the government shutdown, despite significant delays and heightened stress for unpaid air traffic controllers and TSA personnel. However, the prolonged shutdown introduces growing risks to the system’s predictability and safety margins.
The federal government shutdown has entered its fifth week, creating widespread disruptions across the aviation industry. Air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration screeners, classified as essential employees, are required to report to work but will not receive their salaries until after the government reopens. This financial hardship is causing immense stress among frontline workers, who must balance their critical duties with personal financial anxieties. Union leaders warn that each passing day without a resolution further erodes the margin of safety in the national airspace system.
Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, expressed grave concerns about the escalating risks. “Every single day that this goes on tomorrow is now less safe than today,” he stated on CNN News Central. Daniels highlighted the mental toll on controllers, who are preoccupied with how to pay their rent and bills while performing high-stakes jobs that demand absolute focus. The association believes that the longer the shutdown persists, the more vulnerabilities are introduced into the aviation safety net.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy acknowledged that the shutdown has resulted in “significant delays” at airports nationwide. He explained that slowing down flights is one method controllers are using to manage the reduced workforce and maintain safety. “Is there more risk in the system when you have a shutdown? Absolutely there’s more risk,” Duffy said on CNBC. However, he assured the public that if conditions became unsafe, the entire airspace would be shut down—a step authorities have not yet deemed necessary.
The reliability of air travel has been severely compromised, according to Erik Hansen, senior vice president of government relations at the U.S. Travel Association. “The challenge is that the system is never going to compromise safety, but we’re absolutely compromising predictability and the ability of Americans to get to where they want to go on time,” Hansen said. Shortages of controllers and TSA staff have caused ground delays and extended wait times at major hubs like Chicago, Denver, Houston, and Newark, disrupting thousands of passengers daily.
Mike McCormick, an assistant professor of Air Traffic Management at Embry-Riddle University, noted that controllers recognizing their limitations and calling out sick when unable to focus actually helps preserve safety. “If controllers were reporting to work in such a condition that they could not be 100% for their air traffic control duties, then, yes, that creates a risk of safety,” McCormick told CNN. He observed that many controllers are self-regulating by not working when overly stressed, which prevents potential errors but exacerbates staffing shortages.
At Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport, TSA wait times reached three hours over the weekend, with long lines snaking through the terminal. Keith Jeffries, vice president of K2 Security Screening Group and a former TSA federal security director, described a “domino effect” from the shutdown. He believes flying remains safe but anticipates continued delays as frontline employees grapple with financial worries that could distract them from security duties. Jeffries emphasized that the turmoil will linger until the shutdown ends.
Union leaders and major airlines are united in calling for Congress to immediately reopen the government. “Our message is simple, open the government, and it has to open now,” Daniels asserted. The consensus among experts is that while the layered safety systems of aviation are holding, the prolonged shutdown is testing their limits, and a swift resolution is crucial to restoring full confidence and operational stability in air travel.