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Flights to LAX halted due to air traffic controller shortage

Posted by (Seattle, WA, USA ☔️) on

Per AP and local news outlets: Flights to LAX halted due to air traffic controller shortage

The gist: FAA ordered a halt to flights departing to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) this morning just before noon, due to staffing shortages (ATC staff calling in sick) related to the ongoing US federal government shutdown. (It appears that outbound departures from LAX were not impacted.) Aircraft scheduled to depart other airports and traveling to LAX have been ordered to hold position and not takeoff. Presumably this would include any direct flights from Europe to LAX, as well as all domestic arrivals. The FAA is projecting they will remove the ground-stop around 1:30 pm and allow all inbound flights to proceed then. Expect some delays throughout the day as there will be backlogs to clear out and delays at major airports like LAX can ripple through the system and cause delays elsewhere.

As the US federal government shutdown continues (with no sign of any resolution in sight), expect more of this coming up. I've got flights in early November (thankfully, with no tight connections), but I'm avoiding airports through the peak holiday season - if ATC staffing issues continue through Thanksgiving, it's not going to be pretty.

Posted by
9718 posts

Frustrating as this is for travelers, one can’t help but feel for federal employees enduring these difficult times. How many families can go weeks without pay and still be expected to show up to work each day?

I think all of us hope there is resolution soon.

Posted by
3640 posts

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich predicted weeks ago the one thing that will force the hands of the GOP in Washington to end the Federal government shutdown would be Air Traffic Controllers not showing up for work.

More and more Air Traffic Controllers are calling in sick at an accelerating rate while not receiving their paychecks.

Powerful people don’t like not being able to fly when and where they want.

And they hold sway with this government.

Posted by
24247 posts

David, thanks for the update. It would be nice to have a thread for updates on the air controller issues impacting travel plans, and we can if we can keep the political opinion out of it.

Posted by
3070 posts

What we really need is the ATC and TSA at the DC area airports to get organized. When our elected officials get "Stuck" they tend to get unstuck in their duties. (IF they could effect the "golf trips" it might be even better but I assume those are all controlled by military :) )

Posted by
1674 posts

Now we’re hearing that tomorrow will be San Francisco and of course we have a flight tomorrow because we need to be in San Francisco on Tuesday morning. This is so irritating!!!

Edit: I took out my more lengthy opinion on it all…..it would be nice to have a thread so others know what to expect but I agree it’s not going to happen if we start in on the politics.

Posted by
13039 posts

I heard on a TV newscast that some controllers were having to take on other jobs in order to have some cash coming in thus decreasing their availability for their 'primary' job.

As time goes by this will only become more common.

If only 80% of staff shows up, only 80% of flights can be processed, so the restrictions are employed.

Safety first, convenience second.

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