Flight delays at U.S. airports amid government shutdown

A week into the government shutdown — and days before the start of a holiday weekend — travelers at some U.S. airports have already been feeling the pain of flight delays.

There have been more than 12,000 flights delayed at U.S. airports from Monday through Wednesday evening, according to the flight tracking service FlightAware. But it’s not clear how many can be blamed on the shutdown.

Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy has warned that delays and cancellations could result from the lapse in funding. Air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration officers are supposed to work without knowing when they will be paid; Duffy said this week there had been a “slight tick-up” in controllers calling in sick.

“You realize when these types of things happen how rickety the scaffolding can be for our entire aviation infrastructure, that we’re relying on just thousands and thousands of individual people to show up and do the job to keep everything running smoothly,” said Scott Keyes, founder of the cheap-flight service Going.

While the negotiations in Congress are out of travelers’ control, experts say fliers should take precautionary measures to ensure the smoothest possible sailing during the shutdown.

Which airports have seen delays during the shutdown?

On Wednesday night, departures to Reagan National Airport were being delayed by an average of about half an hour due to staffing.

Earlier this week, several airports including Denver, Phoenix, Chicago O’Hare, Newark, Nashville and Burbank, California, experienced delays due to staffing issues. The tower at Hollywood Burbank Airport was unstaffed for a period late Monday.

On its website Wednesday, Nashville International Airport said that staffing levels were back to normal at the air traffic control facility. But air traffic controller staffing shortages on Tuesday resulted in 110 delayed departures and 153 delayed arrivals that affected nearly 39,500 passengers, the airport said.

Should you get to the airport earlier than usual?

If you typically breeze into the airport with minutes to spare before boarding, take it from dads everywhere and plan to arrive early.

“Now is absolutely not the time to test the ‘airport theory’ by showing up 15 minutes before your flight departs,” Melanie Fish, travel expert for the booking site Expedia, said in an e-mailed statement. “Travelers should follow TSA guidance and arrive at least two hours before domestic flights and three hours before international.”

If more TSA officers than usual call out of work, that could cause longer security lines, said Jen Yellin, managing editor at Points Path, in a statement. The company helps people make the most out of loyalty rewards.

“Since airplanes don’t typically hold a plane for long security lines, during peak times, it’s important to arrive to the airport with ample time to spare,” Yellin said. She suggested arriving 30 to 60 minutes earlier than normal in case of problems.

Keyes said travelers who have connecting flights might consider rebooking to get nonstop flights if possible to avoid the chance of more delays.

“The issue with a connecting flight is it doubles the number of landings and takeoffs you have and doubles the chances that you might run into air traffic control hiccups and delays,” he said.

What happens if your flight is delayed?

Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet, suggested travelers arrive at the airport with a plan in case they can’t avoid connecting flights, and delays cause them to miss a leg.

“What alternate flight can you get on to get to your destination?” she said.

She said fliers should also prepare for extra downtime, packing snacks or activities in case they end up waiting around with nothing to do.

Because potential delays are unpredictable, said John Rose, chief risk officer for the travel agency Altour, travelers would be wise to prepare for the worst. He recommended rearranging flights to have a longer connection time or scheduling plenty of buffer time before commitments at your destination.

“I like people to prepare for these things because it’s going to get a lot worse if the shutdown continues,” he said.

What are your rights if a flight is canceled?

If your flight is canceled or significantly delayed — meaning more than three hours for a domestic trip or six hours for international — you are owed a full refund if you choose not to travel.

“Your rights have not changed just because the government is shut down,” Keyes said.

Travelers may still want to continue their trips; in that case, getting rebooked on the next available flight instead of requesting a refund might make more sense. Last-minute tickets are usually more expensive than the one purchased weeks or months ago, but Keyes said travelers can find some value in using points or miles on a last-minute flight.

Airlines have made commitments to passengers in case of delays or cancellations within their control, which include meal vouchers or hotel accommodations for overnight delays. But don’t bank on those perks if your flight is complicated by a shortage of air traffic controllers.

“A government shutdown is not an issue within their control,” French said. “The keyword is controllable cancellation. This would not fit that.”