https://abc7ny.com/post/government-shutdown-hits-air-travel-closing-control-tower-causing-delays-country/17956026/(now for those of us who are used to flying non-towered airparks, KLNA for me, and some larger ones have towers not manned 24/7, I listened to this twice in utter amazement
as Burbank went ATC0. Pilots and Socal became the tower, was something to listen to)
A pilot preparing to take off Monday from Hollywood Burbank Airport in California took the routine step of radioing the air traffic control tower.
But instead of the usual back-and-forth conversation of coordinating departure, the pilot received a different response: "The tower is closed due to staffing," according to audio recorded by LiveATC.net.
The exchange is one example of the impact the ongoing government shutdown is having on travelers across the US as air traffic controller staffing issues have led to delays at major airports and forced pilots in some areas to pivot to alternative workflows.
Controllers are considered essential workers, so they must work during the shutdown, but are not being paid.
Twelve Federal Aviation Administration facilities saw staffing shortages Monday night. The control towers in Burbank, 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 also were short staffed. Perhaps the most dramatic impact was at the Burbank airport where the control tower was entirely shut down around 4:15 p.m. Monday afternoon. Flights could take off and land but had to follow procedures typically used at small airports without control towers. Delays of more than two and a half hours were reported at one point.
Denver International and Newark Liberty International airports saw ground delays where flights were prohibited from taking off until controllers were able to handle them. Both airports are major hubs for United Airlines; the airline did not respond to CNN's request for comment.
The number of controllers calling out sick has increased since the start of the shutdown, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a news conference Monday after talking with controllers in the tower at Newark.
"So now what they think about as they're controlling our airspace, is, 'How am I going to pay my mortgage? How do I make my car payment?'" he said. "Do I think they're more stressed right now in our towers? Yes. Is our airspace unsafe? No."
During this shutdown, Duffy said, the government will do what is necessary to keep the airspace safe.
