Union of Air Traffic Controllers Highlights Escalating Delays Due to Government Shutdown

On Tuesday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy appeared at LaGuardia Airport alongside leaders from the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), urging a reinstatement of pay for air traffic controllers. This comes as the federal government shutdown enters its fourth week, raising concerns about imminent flight delays.

NATCA President Nick Daniels addressed the press, highlighting the financial pressures on controllers. “We’re all aware of the challenges. With rent due soon, we’re caught in a political tug-of-war,” he explained.

Daniels further shared the personal struggles faced by air traffic controllers. “Every day, we receive messages from our controllers expressing their need for side jobs and concerns about childcare. Some even question if they can bring their children to work. This situation is utterly unacceptable and unfair, hindering their ability to effectively serve the American public,” he emphasized.

He continued, “The ongoing stress is forcing controllers to focus on secondary employment instead of prioritizing safety and the well-being of travelers. To maintain safety, we might need to reduce the number of flights they handle.”

As noted by the Daily News, this year has already seen flight disruptions due to staffing shortages and outdated equipment.

Daniels remarked that the absence of pay exacerbates an already overburdened system.

“We’re 3,800 certified professional controllers short,” he said of the nationwide problem. “There were a multitude of delays before this shutdown.”

“We had hundreds of ‘ATC Zero’ events — where we have to shut down a facility — at hundreds of FAA facilities prior to the shutdown,” he added. “That’s in 2025 alone.”

Speaking alongside the union leaders, Duffy said it remains safe to fly. As for the ongoing shutdown, he pointed the finger at Democrats, who President Trump has demanded reopen the government before he’ll negotiate with them on healthcare funding.

When asked if he had any message for Trump or the Democratic Party, Daniels, for his part, said he would “leave politics to the politicians.” But he said Americans should call “all their elected officials” and demand they “end the shutdown, end it today.”

“We have great men and women who run our facilities that, if they don’t have the right staffing levels, or they have distractions in towers, they will slow down the landings and departures in different airports across the country,” Duffy said. “What that means for the American people is more delays or cancellations.”

While many federal workers have been furloughed since the government shutdown began on Oct. 1, the Federal Aviation Administration’s air traffic controllers are among those who have been deemed essential and required to work without pay.

The Trump administration has continued paying Department of Homeland Security officers, including air marshals, ICE deportation agents, Secret Service agents, and Customs and Border Patrol officers, during the shutdown. The President has also said he will pay FBI agents and military service members, though as of Tuesday the details were still in flux.

Meanwhile, Joe Segretto, an air traffic controller and NATCA representative who’s worked at the New York TRACON facility in Nassau County for 18 years, said he’s been having “tough conversations” with his young children now that he’s not getting paid.

“You save money for a rainy day, but you do have things in life, like your mortgage is number one, you start defaulting on your mortgage,” Segretto said when asked about the sacrifices controllers were making. “Feeding your children, feeding yourself, paying for gas to get to work — if your spouse is at work, how do we pay for childcare?”

“There are sacrifices everybody’s going to make,” he continued. “As the days go on, it gets worse and worse and worse.”