Bengaluru — US airlines were scrambling on Thursday to rejig schedules and fielding a flood of customer queries after the US ordered flight cuts at some of the nation’s busiest airports, the latest travel disruption from the prolonged government shutdown.
On Wednesday, transportation secretary Sean Duffy said he would order steep cuts citing air traffic control safety risks from the government shutdown.
The shutdown, now the longest in US history, has forced about 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration agents to work without pay.
Staffing shortages have already caused tens of thousands of flight delays nationwide, with airlines estimating that at least 3.2-million travellers have been affected.
Industry sources said the first round of reductions, cutting about 4% of scheduled flights, would take effect as soon as Friday. The cuts will rise to 5% on Saturday, 6% on Sunday and reach as much as 10% by next week if the shutdown persists.
Thanksgiving chaos
Unless the government reopens, the drastic plan threatens to throw holiday plans into chaos for millions of Americans travelling for Thanksgiving, marking one of the most visible ripple effects yet from the record-long government shutdown.
“The longer this goes on the more disruption there is and fewer passengers are going to be flying ultimately,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation, UK.
“[The airlines might] have some flexibility on prices, but if this shutdown goes on much longer then that should have a negative effect overall.”
The Federal Aviation Administration is expected to formally issue the order for flight reductions later on Thursday.
The move aims to ease pressure on controllers, with the administration short about 3,500 staff and many working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown.
Airlines including United Airlines, American Airlines and Southwest were inundated with passenger queries on social media platforms such as X, as flyers sought clarity on travel plans.
“This will mean lost revenues and a potential hit to profits in what is a highly operationally geared business, where even small changes in the top line can lead to big movements in the bottom line,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
Still, carriers stressed they would try to minimise disruption for customers and that rebooking efforts were under way.
United CEO Scott Kirby said the airline will target its cuts on regional flying and non-hub domestic routes and that the carrier expected to rebook many affected travelers.
Southwest, the largest domestic carrier, said it was evaluating how the cuts would affect its schedule and it would communicate with customers as soon as possible.
“I guess the good news is that we’re in a low-demand period in November,” Frontier Airlines CEO Barry Biffle said on Wednesday, adding that the flight reductions could even help the carrier’s unit revenue.
Reuters
