Over 2,000 flights cancelled or delayed by US government shutdown

Thousands of flights have been delayed or cancelled across the US due to the record-long government shutdown.

Passengers have had their weekend plans upended as flights have been grounded at 40 busiest airports.

Airlines have tried to rebook passengers on other flights, but many have had to change their travel plans in the face of the prolonged scuffle between the Republicans and Democrats.

A woman told Metro her fiancé was travelling from Reno to Las Vegas,both in Nevada, yesterday at 7.15pm, but his flight didn’t leave until 10pm.

She claimed this was because ‘Las Vegas had no air traffic controller.

‘All flights to Las Vegas were grounded,’ she said, adding that she is due to fly next week.

She told Metro: ‘I’m stressed because if my flight is delayed or cancelled, I will miss my Halsey concert in Denver, Colorado.’

More flights could be cut after the transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, said the flight reductions could increase to 20% of flights at 40 main airports.

The protracted shutdown has also raised concerns over the upcoming Thanksgiving journeys on November 27 – traditionally the busiest travel time for people flying to visit loved ones across the vast country.

The Halsey fan told Metro: ‘If this isn’t fixed by then I can’t imagine how many people will lose money and family time due to cancelled or delayed flights.’

Airlines and passengers have demanded an end to the government closure.

Republicans and Democrats have not been able to resolve their battle over government spending, which started more than a month ago.

It has now entered day 38, making it the longest shutdown ever.

The shutdown means hundreds of thousands of federal workers, including air traffic controllers, have not been paid, causing shortages of vital staff.

The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered airlines to axe thousands of flights from today in response to the shortage of air traffic controllers to keep the skies safe.

Which airports are affected by government shutdown?

A total of 40 high-impact airports are affected by the flight cuts. There have reportedly been over 2,000 cancellations and delays so far today.

American Airlines said around 12,000 customers’ flights were cancelled today, meaning around 220 flights under the FAA’s order. It expectes to operate about 6,000 flights despite the cuts.

It told CBS News that most of the affected people were ‘rebooked and reaccommodated.’

Tracking websites show that Delta Air Lines had 851 cancellations today listed for today, 670 tomorrow and 274 on Sunday so far.

Duffy said the decision to cut flights was made following ‘more breaches’ of safety, including the minimum distance between planes and more tarmac incursions, according to CBS News.

He said pilots had reported stressed or less responsive air traffic controllers amid the shortages.

Duffy told Fox News today: ‘If this shutdown doesn’t end relatively soon, the consequence of that is going to be more controllers don’t come to work, and then we’re going to have to continue to assess the pressure in the airspace and make decisions that may again move us from 10% to 15%, maybe to 20.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.