Travellers take note: US govt shutdown may trigger flight delays and cancellations, here's why
US President Trump and Republicans blamed the Senate Democrats for blocking the bill to continue funding government services and operations till November 21.
The United States government shut down on Wednesday after a bill to continue funding government services and operations failed to secure the minimum votes for passage in the Senate.
US President Donald Trump and the Republicans blamed the Senate Democrats for blocking the bill, while calling it a ‘Democrat shutdown’. The Democrats had refused to vote for the bill unless it included an extension of health-care subsidies and rolled back Medicaid cuts, which the Republicans refused to attach.
If the shutdown continues for a longer duration, it could impact travel plans owing to longer wait times at airports, and flight delays and cancellations. the Associated Press reported. During this time, while non-essential employees are likely to be furloughed, the essential federal employees, including those who keep US airports and air travel running, will be working without pay.
Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the US Travel Association, said that the longer the shutdown, the more likely travellers are to “see longer TSA lines, flight delays and cancellations, national parks in disrepair and unnecessary delays in modernizing travel infrastructure”, according to the AP report.
Air travel delays, immigration process
The lapse in funding still allows people to travel via air, and initial days will be much the same as before, with control towers and airport security checkpoints remaining staffed.
About 13,000 air traffic controllers and more than 61,000 Transportation Security Administration employees are likely to remain on the job, AP reported.
However, the longer the shutdown drags on and the paychecks are delayed, travellers might witness longer lines at the security checkpoints. They may also experience flight interruptions, Jeffrey Price, professor of aviation at the Metropolitan State University of Denver, told AP.
This was the case during the shutdown in US President Trump's first term, which lasted for 35 days. Three weeks post shutdown, unpaid security screeners started to call in sick, while air traffic controllers went so far as to sue the government in order to get their paychecks.
TSA officers calling in sick at twice the usual rate led to Miami International Airport temporarily closing one of its terminals. The latest shutdown's impact might be heightened, given that it is unfolding at a time whenthe TSA and the Federal Aviation Administration are already facing staff shortages.
If the system is unable to handle the number of scheduled flights, the FAA will slow down landings and take offs, thus leading to passengers facing delays and cancellations.
Meanwhile, the Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which oversees the naturalization process, is primarily funded by the application fees. Thus, the lapse in federal funding as minimal impacts on most passport and visa processing.
However, agency spokesperson Matthew Tragesser said that the government shutdown will temporarily suspend the USCIS E-Verify program, AP reported. This is a free online system that employers use to confirm their new employees are authorized to work in the US.
However, the effect may spill over to new applicants for H-1B visas and employment-based green cards.
This is because the visa process involves filing a Labour Condition Application (LCA) with the US department of labour. Once the LCA is approved, the firm sponsoring the visa can move forward with the application process with the USCIS. Further, the department has to provide a PERM certification that allows an individual to apply for an employment-based green card.
However, the shutdown snaps funding to the labour department, which will be forced to cease processing of these applications.
