‘It was a headache’ | Government shutdown causing more flight cancellations, delays at Houston airports

The Federal Aviation Administration ordered airlines to cancel six percent of their flights on Tuesday at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports.

HOUSTON — Air travelers are feeling the effects of the government shutdown even more, as airlines were ordered to cancel more flights due to a shortage of air traffic controllers.

At George Bush Intercontinental Airport, 53 flights were canceled Tuesday and nearly 40 were delayed, according to FlightAware. Meanwhile, operations at William P. Hobby Airport remained relatively smooth, though travelers still experienced disruptions.

“Was supposed to fly out today earlier, around 12, but on Saturday, I got a notification from Southwest, ‘You got canceled.’ I said okay,” traveler Johnathan Vela said.

Vela said he managed to get another flight to Florida, but it was five hours behind his original departure time, so he had to adjust his accommodations.

“I called the hotel, called the buses. It was a headache,” he said.

The Federal Aviation Administration ordered airlines to cancel six percent of their flights Tuesday at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports. According to FlightAware, 21 flights were canceled and around 25 were delayed at Hobby.

Despite the cancellations, travelers said airport operations appeared to be fine at both ticketing and security.

“It was better than I expected it to be. Got to the airport. TSA lines, there were like two people in front of me,” traveler Lisa Hermes said.

Congress is making progress toward ending the shutdown, with a funding bill currently being discussed by lawmakers. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the priority is to get air traffic controllers back on the job.

“I believe that in this package to reopen the government, our controllers could be paid within 48 hours of the government opening. Not all. I think it’s 70 percent payment,” Duffy said.

But aviation expert Josh Verde warned it could take time for things to fully recover once the government reopens.

“It’s important to remember that nothing moves fast in government,” Verde said. “If there’s a disruption to the schedule, then it takes some time for the airlines to get everything back in place, move crews around, move flights around and get everything back to a normal schedule, so I would expect at least a week if we’re lucky, and hopefully it won’t encroach on the holiday season.”

Many travelers said they are continuing to keep close tabs on their flight statuses amid the uncertainty.

“I have the Southwest app on my phone, and it just kind of shows up like real-time updates, which have been super helpful,” traveler Erin Detrick said.

If the government shutdown does not end soon, FAA-ordered flight cuts could increase to 10 percent by Friday.

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