US government shutdown causes flight delays at Las Américas Airport

Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic — The U.S. federal government shutdown has begun to have direct impacts on international air operations, causing delays in departures and arrivals at Las Américas International Airport, José Francisco Peña Gómez (AILA).

This was reported on Friday by Aeropuertos Dominicanos Siglo XXI ( Aerodom ), a subsidiary of Vinci Airports, which indicated that the situation is due to personnel problems in the US air traffic control system, affected by the temporary closure of the federal administration.

Aerodom ‘s corporate director , Luis López, explained that although there have been no flight cancellations so far, there have been delays in flights to and from various cities in the United States.

“Some commercial flights departing from and returning to North American cities have experienced delays, but thank God no cancellations have been reported so far,” López said.

The situation has caused concern among dozens of passengers scheduled to travel to the United States on Friday night. Given the possibility of further delays, Aerodom advised travelers to stay in contact with their airlines to check the status of their flights before heading to the terminal.

Effect of the federal shutdown on air traffic

From the United States , Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that the government shutdown has severely impacted air traffic control personnel.

He explained that many air traffic controllers have called in sick or absent, causing significant delays at several key facilities across the country.

“On average, about five percent of our delays are due to staffing shortages, but we have had as many as 53 percent of delays for this reason,” Duffy said during a press conference at Philadelphia International Airport.

The official detailed that seven air traffic control centers, including those in Dallas-Fort Worth, Newark, Phoenix, Houston, Atlanta, and Denver, are operating with reduced staffing. Since the start of the shutdown, 217 staffing shortages have been reported, more than four times the number recorded during the same period last year.

Workers without pay and with growing tension

Air traffic controllers, some 10,800 federal employees, are required to continue working despite not receiving pay during the shutdown. On October 28, thousands of them received their first zero-value paycheck, which has increased frustration and absenteeism.

“Their paycheck will be a big zero. There’s a lot of frustration, a lot of anxiety, because like everyone else, they’re counting on that salary to plan their expenses,” Duffy said.

While the political impasse in Washington continues unresolved, the effects are beginning to be felt at international airports such as Las Américas , where Dominican authorities are monitoring the situation minute by minute, hoping that there will be no mass cancellations over the weekend.