A ground stop has been issued at Chicago O’Hare International Airport due to staffing shortages caused by the government shutdown, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The FAA’s website states the ground stop began at 11.24am and was expected to remain until 12.45pm, because delays were averaging 15 minutes and steadily increasing.
The ground stop comes just one day after more than 1,000 flights were cancelled across the US, 100 of which were in Chicago.
Flight reductions took place in 40 high-traffic airports across the country, including O’Hare International, which is the airport with the most routes in the US, particularly for domestic connections.
More than 1,300 flights have reportedly been cancelled as of 2pm today, according to the flight-tracking website Flightaware.com. In Chicago, 83 flights have been cancelled at O’Hare and more than 300 delayed.
American Airlines was most heavily impacted, with 292 of its 5,485 scheduled flights cancelled.
That represents 5.3 percent, and other major airlines clocked in cancellations ranging from two percent to more than four percent of their scheduled flights.
Similar rates of cancellation are expected to occurr tomorrow as well.
Ground stops hold aircraft at their departure points to prevent air traffic systems from becoming overwhelmed, and they usually only last up to 30 minutes, according to the National Business Aviation Association.
They are also usually caused by factors such as severe weather or technical issues, but in this case, the stop was due to a staff shortage caused by the government shutdown.
On Wednesday, the FAA announced its decision to reduce service at high-volume airports to maintain safety as furloughed air traffic controllers show signs of strain and being overworked.
The Trump administration has been ramping up pressure on Democrats to end the government shutdown.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned Friday that cancellations could spike to 20 percent if the government isn’t reopened soon, as the record-long shutdown drags into its 39th day.
The FAA’s Wednesday announcement to reduce service said: ‘With continued delays and unpredictable staffing shortages, which are driving fatigue, risk is further increasing, and the FAA is concerned with the system’s ability to maintain the current volume of operations.’
Airlines will be required to issue full refunds for the cancelled flights but will not have to cover secondary costs such as food and lodging unless the cancellation was due to a factor in their control, according to the Department of Transportation.
Last weekend had some of the worst staffing shortages among air traffic controllers since the start of the shutdown.
Between Friday and Sunday evenings, 39 air traffic control facilities reported potential understaffing, according to an AP analysis of operations plans shared through the Air Traffic Control System Command Center.
The previous record-long shutdown that lasted 35 days during Trump’s first term ended in large part thanks to pressures caused by overworked air traffic controllers and flight delays impacting everyday Americans.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
