Air travel in the United States could soon “slow to a trickle,” authorities warned on Sunday as thousands more flights were cancelled or delayed, causing chaos for passengers due to the federal government shutdown.
“You’re going to have air travel slow to a trickle as everyone wants to travel to see their families,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told Fox News Sunday, ahead of Thanksgiving holidays starting in two weeks.
“We’re going to see air traffic controllers, very few of them coming to work, which means you’ll have a few flights taking off and landing. You’re going to have massive disruption and a lot of angry Americans.”
More than 1,000 flights have been cancelled in the US government shutdown fallout.
More than 8,000 US flights have been delayed as air traffic control absences persist.
The US is set to cancel more flights as the longest government shutdown drags on.
