U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy attends a press conference on the impact of the ongoing federal government shutdown on air travel, at LaGuardia Airport in the Queens borough of New York City, U.S., October 28, 2025
Republican former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger wrote: “Cutting flights because of the govt shutdown is a stunt, plain and simple.”
He also remarked, “We’re cutting flights and food because of the govt shutdown but ICE is out [in] full force!”
November 07, 2025
ALTERNET
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy sought Friday to cast a positive light on the Federal Aviation Administration’s order requiring airlines to cut ten percent of flights at 40 major airports — a move prompted by overworked air traffic controllers who have gone weeks without pay as the government shutdown stretches into its 38th day with no immediate end in sight.
More than 800 flights nationwide were canceled on Friday, leaving some travelers “scrambling to figure out backup plans,” the Associated Press reported.
But According to Secretary Duffy, he has come up with a “unique action” that reduces a major frustration of air travel: flight delays.
“I asked the head of the air traffic controller union to reach out to his controllers, to ask them to show up. It is their jobs,” Duffy said on Friday.
“If they start coming to work, we may have the same experience we had in Newark: We had delays and cancellations in Newark in the early summer. We reduced the capacity, and then the flights were on time. Right?”
“It was the most on-time months we had in Newark ever,” he added. “So that could be an outcome of what we’re doing, and we’ll see probably more people on less flights, which means less pressure on controllers.”
Secretary Duffy also said, “There’s a very easy solution to the problem that they put directly on my lap, which is open the damn government. Vote to open the government, so those who snipe at me for having to take really unique action — they put that on my plate.”
Critics blasted Duffy.
More than 800 flights nationwide were canceled on Friday, leaving some travelers “scrambling to figure out backup plans,” the Associated Press reported.
But According to Secretary Duffy, he has come up with a “unique action” that reduces a major frustration of air travel: flight delays.
“I asked the head of the air traffic controller union to reach out to his controllers, to ask them to show up. It is their jobs,” Duffy said on Friday.
“If they start coming to work, we may have the same experience we had in Newark: We had delays and cancellations in Newark in the early summer. We reduced the capacity, and then the flights were on time. Right?”
“It was the most on-time months we had in Newark ever,” he added. “So that could be an outcome of what we’re doing, and we’ll see probably more people on less flights, which means less pressure on controllers.”
Secretary Duffy also said, “There’s a very easy solution to the problem that they put directly on my lap, which is open the damn government. Vote to open the government, so those who snipe at me for having to take really unique action — they put that on my plate.”
Critics blasted Duffy.
Republican former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger wrote: “Cutting flights because of the govt shutdown is a stunt, plain and simple.”
He also remarked, “We’re cutting flights and food because of the govt shutdown but ICE is out [in] full force!”
'Am I going to be homeless?' Air traffic controller says colleague facing eviction
Air traffic controllers resume operations a day after Hollywood Burbank Airport operated for hours without a staffed control tower due to staffing shortages amid the U.S. government shutdown, in Burbank, California, U.S., October 7, 2025.
REUTERS/Daniel Cole
November 07, 2025
ALTERNET
Air traffic controllers have been working without pay for 37 days, and more are having to deal with the stress of going without basic needs the longer the government shutdown drags on. For one controller, this includes potentially living on the street.
In a Friday interview with CNN host Erin Burnett, Dan McCabe — who is the Southern Regional Vice President of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association — said more air traffic controllers are in "desperate" economic situations, and feel increasingly "hopeless" and "mad" every day the shutdown continues.
"I got a call today that there is a controller, a fairly new controller that is now being evicted from their apartment. They got the notice that if they don't pay rent by Sunday, they're getting evicted. So, you know, that's great," McCabe said sarcastically. "You get to add that stress to everything. Now when they're on break, they get to think about, 'how am I going to pay to move? Where am I going to go? Am I going to be homeless?'"
McCabe reminded viewers that the work of an air traffic controller is "fatiguing," and that many controllers have "punishing" schedules in which they have to report to work six days out of the week for 10 hours a day.
"That's four days off a month for anyone counting. And that's not a lot of time to spend with your family or do things around the house," he said. "... I worry about them all the time, because they're dealing with things that they have nothing to do with. And like, we're talking about the person who's facing eviction: Are we really going to let this person take a hit on their credit, where they're going to have trouble getting a new place?"
"What have they done wrong? They've been to work," he continued. "They're doing what they they swore they would do as their first day as a federal employee — working on behalf of the United States of America, they're moving people and cargo globally. And this is what they're getting out of it ... there are no words for it."
McCabe went on to say that he "completely understand[s]" why Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the Federal Aviation Administration were cutting air traffic and delaying flights, saying safety should always take precedent over efficiency.
"We're reducing the efficiency to to account for the safety of it," he said. "And when you have people that are going to work and they're worried about things, basic human needs, you're injecting some risk into a system that at its foundation was built to be risk averse. I completely understand what they're doing."
Watch the segment below
In a Friday interview with CNN host Erin Burnett, Dan McCabe — who is the Southern Regional Vice President of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association — said more air traffic controllers are in "desperate" economic situations, and feel increasingly "hopeless" and "mad" every day the shutdown continues.
"I got a call today that there is a controller, a fairly new controller that is now being evicted from their apartment. They got the notice that if they don't pay rent by Sunday, they're getting evicted. So, you know, that's great," McCabe said sarcastically. "You get to add that stress to everything. Now when they're on break, they get to think about, 'how am I going to pay to move? Where am I going to go? Am I going to be homeless?'"
McCabe reminded viewers that the work of an air traffic controller is "fatiguing," and that many controllers have "punishing" schedules in which they have to report to work six days out of the week for 10 hours a day.
"That's four days off a month for anyone counting. And that's not a lot of time to spend with your family or do things around the house," he said. "... I worry about them all the time, because they're dealing with things that they have nothing to do with. And like, we're talking about the person who's facing eviction: Are we really going to let this person take a hit on their credit, where they're going to have trouble getting a new place?"
"What have they done wrong? They've been to work," he continued. "They're doing what they they swore they would do as their first day as a federal employee — working on behalf of the United States of America, they're moving people and cargo globally. And this is what they're getting out of it ... there are no words for it."
McCabe went on to say that he "completely understand[s]" why Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the Federal Aviation Administration were cutting air traffic and delaying flights, saying safety should always take precedent over efficiency.
"We're reducing the efficiency to to account for the safety of it," he said. "And when you have people that are going to work and they're worried about things, basic human needs, you're injecting some risk into a system that at its foundation was built to be risk averse. I completely understand what they're doing."
Watch the segment below
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