Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that delays and cancellations of flights “will live on” beyond when the government shutdown ends.
Duffy appeared on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday, on the 40th day of the government shutdown. His appearance comes on the heels of 5,000 flights getting delayed or canceled in a single day.
“The problem I have too is I’m short air traffic controllers,” Duffy told host Jake Tapper. “I used to have about four controllers retire a day before the shutdown. I‘m now up to 15 to 20 a day retiring. So it‘s going to be harder for me to come back after the shutdown and have more controllers controlling the airspace. So this is going to live on in air travel well beyond the time frame that this government opens back up.”
“This will live on” — Duffy explains that flying will remain a mess even after the shutdown because so many air traffic controllers are retiring pic.twitter.com/YUBBajG644
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 9, 2025
Duffy referred to the shutdown as a “mess that Democrats have put on my lap” and explained how he is receiving support from the Trump administration.
“Pete Hegseth, secretary of war, texted me yesterday and said, ‘I might have some air traffic controllers. If you could use them, I‘m going to offer them to you,’” Duffy said. “Now, I don‘t know that I can, Jake, because they‘re not certified in the air spaces that we need them. But if I can, I‘m going to use them.”
Sean Duffy: “The secretary of war texted me yesterday and said, ‘I might have some air traffic controllers. If you could use them, I’m gonna offer them to you.’ I don’t know that I can, Jake, because they’re not certified in the airspaces that we need them. But if I can, I’m… pic.twitter.com/YLp1ZoIw7D
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 9, 2025
Tapper asked Duffy how this would affect holiday travel with Thanksgiving two weeks away. Duffy suggested that a “substantial” number of travelers will see their travel plans affected.
TAPPER: Do you have any numerical idea of how many Americans will not be able to be with their families for Thanksgiving because of this?
DUFFY: I think the number is going to be substantial pic.twitter.com/CkRvkALqoc
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 9, 2025
Thanksgiving is among the busiest travel days, according to the Transportation Security Administration. Last year, the Friday before the holiday saw over 2.7 million passengers, which was repeated the Wednesday before. Then, the Sunday following Thanksgiving hit an all-time record with over 3 million people traveling that day alone.
OVER 5,000 FLIGHTS DELAYED OR CANCELED ON SECOND DAY OF FAA CUTS AS DUFFY THREATENS MORE REDUCTIONS
Last week, the Transportation Department announced a 10% reduction in flights at 40 locations due to the shutdown. Air traffic controllers have missed two paychecks since Congress missed the deadline to fund the government on Oct. 1.
According to Duffy, there could be as high as a 20% reduction in flights should the shutdown continue.
