On Sunday, it was reported that all flights bound for Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) were halted. According to a report from The Associated Press and picked up by several other outlets, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said that all incoming flights bound for LAX would be held in their city of origin due to an air traffic controller shortage.
However, when Straight Arrow News reached out to LAX for confirmation, the public information officer (PIO) on duty was aware of only one flight that had been delayed. “This morning, the FAA issued a ground stop from LA to Oakland Airport,” the public information officer told SAN, adding that the stop was due to issues in Oakland, not Los Angeles.
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Possible delays, but no disruptions so far
According to the FAA’s website, there was the possibility of a ground stop and delay at LAX until 3 p.m. CST on Sunday. However, the official flight tracker via LAX doesn’t appear to show any interruptions. Some outlets reported that delays, which lasted an average of 1 hour and 40 minutes, began at 11:42 a.m. ET.
The public information officer at LAX did clarify that air traffic control operations are segmented into geographic zones, and that issues at one airport could’ve affected those in the same zone.
“I did hear that because it’s by zone, the airspace that they shut down, that maybe some neighboring airports were having some issues as well,” the PIO explained to SAN. “I can only comment on LAX, of course, but that is what I heard.”
Air traffic controllers and the gov’t shutdown
Air traffic controller shortages and disruptions to airport operations have been ongoing since the start of the government shutdown, which will enter its fourth week on Wednesday. In early October, roughly 10% of the nation’s air traffic controllers were reportedly calling in sick.
During a Sunday appearance on Fox News, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that come Tuesday, paychecks will stop for roughly 13,000 air traffic controllers across the country.
