Amid the federal government shutdown, more than 13,000 air traffic controllers (ATCs) continue to manage 35,000 flights per day without a paycheck. The White House reportedly is looking to change that.
Sources within and close to Donald Trump’s administration told Politico that the president is exploring avenues to pay ATCs and other “excepted” personnel while the shutdown continues. Those discussions have also seeped into the FAA, two sources said.
The White House hopes to avoid a repeat of the events of 2019, when air traffic disruptions—due to controllers calling out sick—were credited as a turning point in ending the previous shutdown.
“We vividly remember when this became the breaking point,” one source, described as an “administration ally,” told Politico. “We don’t want to get to that point again.”
ATC Impact
Though controllers cannot legally organize sick outs or other strike actions, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said earlier this month that the FAA has seen a “slight pickup” in sick calls since the shutdown began October 1. Duffy has threatened to fire controllers who don’t show up to work, calling them “problem children.”
Union leaders, meanwhile, have accused the government of using controllers as pawns to achieve political victories. Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA), said earlier this month that the White House is playing a “dangerous game” and creating “increasingly unsafe” ATC working conditions.
“In safety, we know that the first role is to remove all distractions in order to keep things safe,” Nelson said during a news briefing on Capitol Hill. “What could be more of a distraction than not getting a paycheck? Not knowing if you’re going to be able to keep your child alive? Not knowing that you’re going to be able to make good on what the people who count on you and love you need you to do?”
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) said some of its members are working 10-hour days and six-day weeks to combat a shortage of about 3,800 certified controllers that has persisted for years. Working without pay, Nelson said, only exacerbates their stress.
And the impacts are already being felt. Between October 6 and 10, for example, there were more than 23,000 flight delays in the U.S. Duffy said that more than half of these disruptions were staffing-related. Normally, he said, that figure is closer to five percent.
“My husband and I just had our first child this last year, so add in the financial stress of not knowing when you’re going to get paid next, and you can imagine the immense pressure that our family is feeling right now,” Natelie Chappell, a controller at the Potomac terminal radar approach control (TRACON) facility in Virginia, said in a video shared by NATCA.
On Monday, which marked the International Day of the Controller, ATC organizations around the world—including the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Associations (IFATCA), which represents 130 such groups—shared messages of support.
“Our colleagues are being compelled to work under immense pressure, without pay, and with uncertainty hanging over their heads—used as political leverage in matters far beyond their control,” IFATCA said in a statement. “This is not only unjust—it is deeply disrespectful to a profession built entirely on trust, safety, and responsibility.”
How Trump Could Pay ATCs
Air traffic controllers received partial paychecks last week and will not be paid next week—unless the government intervenes.
A congressional aide source told Politico that covering ATC payrolls would cost about $500 million per month. Finding that money poses a challenge, as Congress would need to pull it from a different funding allocation. White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director Russell Vought said last week during a podcast appearance that OMB has been “playing budgetary twister.”
The administration has devised a way to pay military servicemembers, with an executive order allowing the Pentagon to tap into billions of unobligated funding. However, it is unclear if that strategy will hold up in court.
The executive order route allowed Trump to avoid a bipartisan vote—such as the one planned this week on the Shutdown Fairness Act, which would extend shutdown pay to other excepted workers. Senate Democrats have voiced opposition to the measure, arguing it should also cover furloughed workers.
Trump could again take matters into his own hands if the legislation is shot down. The president has not shied away from invoking the power of the pen, particularly when it involves the federal workforce.
