Experts Warn US Flight Delays May Worsen Amid FAA Staffing Crisis

(UNITED STATES) Flight delays across the United States are climbing fast and could worsen in the coming days as air traffic controllers face deep staffing shortages during the ongoing government shutdown. As of October 12, 2025, the Federal Aviation Administration is operating with a shortfall of about 3,500 air traffic controllers below target levels, forcing reduced flight volumes and ground stops at major hubs including Chicago O’Hare, Newark Liberty, and Ronald Reagan Washington National. Experts warn that the combined pressure of unpaid shifts, weather, and rerouted international flights is forming a severe bottleneck that will be hard to ease without quick action in Washington.

The shutdown, now in its twelfth day, has interrupted pay for nearly 11,000 certified controllers, fueling higher rates of sick calls, burnout, and absenteeism. Before the shutdown, staffing was linked to just 5% of delays. By October 9, that figure jumped to 53%, showing how sharply staffing problems are now driving disruption.

In one recent day alone, more than 4,000 flights were delayed nationwide, with ground delays at affected airports averaging between 31 to 126 minutes. Airlines are waiving change fees and rebooking travelers where they can, but the scale of the breakdown continues to outpace fixes. Industry estimates put daily economic losses at about $100 million per day in lost productivity and added costs.

How reduced staffing affects operations

With fewer certified people on headsets in towers and radar rooms, airports lower the number of flights they can safely handle each hour. Mandatory overtime, combined with unpaid work during the shutdown, is stretching teams thin. Controllers and managers are choosing safety over speed, which means:

• Fewer takeoffs and landings per hour
• More ground holds and ground stops
• Increased missed connections and cascade delays

According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, the surge in staffing-driven delays suggests that relief will depend on both restoring pay and funding long-term hiring and training. The FAA cannot rush new controllers into chairs: training is lengthy and requires instructors, simulators, and on-the-job mentoring—all of which depend on budget stability and experienced staff who can teach while keeping traffic moving.

Airports hit hardest and what travelers should expect

For travelers, the effects of the shortage are immediate and personal. Medical appointments, school commitments, and job start dates are being disrupted. Foreign students and work visa holders with tight onboarding timelines face rebookings they cannot control.

When air traffic controllers cut hourly capacity, ripple effects spread through the network: a morning ground stop at one airport becomes missed connections by afternoon, and redeyes arrive late into already crowded morning banks.

Key impacts at major airports:
– Ronald Reagan Washington National: 274% higher cancellation rate; nearly 6% of flights canceled; on-time performance down >10%.
– Atlanta (ATL): 257% increase in cancellations; on-time arrivals down 9.3%.
– Boston Logan (BOS): 68% higher cancellation rate; on-time performance down 3.7%.
– LaGuardia (LGA): 65% increase in cancellations; on-time performance down 6.1%.
– Philadelphia (PHL): 63% increase in cancellations; on-time performance down 2.2%.

Some airports are holding up better. Examples of improved performance have been cited in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, San Francisco, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Chicago O’Hare, but those improvements do not offset the broader nationwide strain. With major hubs throttled back, even well-performing airports can see late arrivals, longer taxi times, and last-minute gate changes driven by upstream congestion.

Other contributing factors: weather and global reroutes

Complicating matters, weather continues to trigger ground delays, including storms affecting San Francisco International. Global conflict zones in the Middle East and Ukraine are closing or narrowing airspace, forcing longer routes and moving heavy traffic into alternate corridors. That extra congestion feeds back into U.S. airspace, adding more flight delays even on clear days.

When routes stretch and planes run late, gate availability and crew scheduling become further pinch points. The combined effect of staffing shortages, weather, and reroutes is a severe bottleneck that is hard to relieve quickly.

Experts say that without a quick end to the government shutdown and targeted funding to rebuild staffing, the fall travel season could push daily delays even higher—potentially topping 5,000 delayed flights per day.

What travelers and employers can do now

Practical steps to reduce risk of being stranded:

1. Check and monitor flight status early and often.
2. Sign up for airline alerts and use carrier apps for same-day changes.
3. Build wider layovers and choose earlier flights when possible.
4. Consider alternate airports if your route depends on constrained hubs.
5. If you have time-sensitive commitments (visa interviews, biometrics, first-day on the job, school start dates), travel earlier rather than later.

Airlines are waiving many change fees, but seats and crews are limited. Leaving a day earlier may prevent a chain of missed connections that becomes impossible to fix once the system slows.

Policy stakes, safety choices, and the long road back

The FAA has been clear: the country needs more trained people, better scheduling flexibility, and steady funding to keep pace with air traffic growth and to cover attrition. During the shutdown, routine pay and scheduling stability are in question, and that directly affects availability.

• Restarting pay for nearly 11,000 certified controllers would likely reduce sick calls and improve attendance.
• Funding targeted hiring to address the 3,500-person shortfall would begin the long process of rebuilding capacity.
• Investing in training and modern systems would help controllers work more efficiently and handle demand without relying on constant overtime.

Longer term, experts point to a multi-year rebuild that requires congressional action to fund hiring, training, retention, and technology upgrades. None of that moves without a budget deal. As long as the government shutdown continues, staffing gaps deepen, training slows, and experienced professionals may reconsider continuing unpaid double shifts.

Economic and human toll

The ripple effects extend beyond airports and airlines. The rise in flight delays pulls money out of local economies as travelers cancel trips, skip hotel nights, and miss business meetings. The estimated $100 million per day in losses includes:

• Lost productivity for workers
• Added childcare expenses for families stuck away from home
• Missed opportunities for small businesses that rely on timely travel

For newcomers to the United States—students, workers, and families—these delays add stress to already complex plans and tight immigration timelines. A single canceled leg can mean missing a school start date or a new hire orientation, accentuating the human toll.

Official information and next steps

Travelers seeking official updates on system operations can monitor the Federal Aviation Administration for status information and policy notices: https://www.faa.gov. While airlines remain the first point of contact for rebooking, the FAA’s alerts give context on ground stops, flow controls, and staffing-related constraints that drive the day’s schedule.

VisaVerge.com reports that data trends since the start of the shutdown underscore how staffing has shifted from a background factor to a top cause of nationwide disruption.

The warning from experts is not subtle: delays will worsen if the shutdown continues and staffing remains below safe targets.

The fall travel season fills planes, and with limited slack in schedules, the system has little room to recover each day. Some airports will continue to post better numbers—especially outside the most crowded corridors—but the national picture will remain strained until funding and staffing stabilize.

For now, the United States faces a clear set of choices: pay the people who keep planes safely spaced, train the next wave of talent, and restore schedules—or watch the tally of late departures and missed arrivals climb even higher.