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Flight delays continues at Austin airport
Airports were already dealing with staffing shortages before the government shutdown. Now, after more than a month without pay, workers are stretched thin.
AUSTIN, Texas - Airports were already dealing with staffing shortages before the government shutdown.
Now, after more than a month without pay, workers are stretched thin.
On Monday afternoon, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport had a ground stop lasting over an hour followed by about a five-hour ground delay due to staffing shortages.
Ground stop and delay lifted
What we know:
The ground stop went into effect at 2:50 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 3, and was canceled shortly before 4 p.m.
Staffing is listed as the reason why, according to the FAA.
The delay went into effect at 3:37 p.m. and lasted shortly before 8 p.m.
Departures were delayed for an average of 58 minutes, with a maximum delay of 142 minutes.
The advisory notes staffing as the reason for the delay.
Travelers voice frustrations
What they're saying:
The government shutdown is making air travel a nightmare, ground stops and delays are causing mass disruptions, plus security checkpoints are taking hours to get through.
Wait times to get through TSA lasted up to three hours at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on Monday morning.
Marien Jamshidi lives in Georgetown, Texas, and was traveling from New York.
"We were worried because we had purchased our tickets months ago, and then we were like, oh no, my gosh, what's going to happen? And we were kind of prepared, but we were not prepared to spend 11 hours in the airport," said Marien Jamshidi.
TSA wait times at Texas airports: How to check
The delays are being caused by TSA staffing shortages and reduced checkpoint availability linked to the federal government shutdown.
Nearly 13,000 air traffic controllers and around 60,000 TSA agents have continued to work without pay since the government shutdown more than a month ago.
"I was a little bit worried about whether I had to take two planes to get here and I was worried that maybe I'd miss a connection with all that's going on or my flight would get delayed or canceled," said Samantha Elwood, who was traveling to Portland, Oregon.
Staffing shortages left some towers nearly empty, with 80% of air traffic controllers absent at New York area facilities, according to the FAA.
"I definitely don't want to be flying for the next two months," said Dustin McDaniel, who was traveling from New York. "I mean, this is pretty bad. We got lucky because we made it just before they did the ground stop."
Close to 500 flights were canceled going into or out of the U.S. on Friday, Oct. 31, according to Flight Aware.
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Camille Jamshidi lives in Austin, Texas, and was traveling from New York.
"Our flight got delayed by a couple of hours on Friday, then it got canceled, and then they told us to fly on standby at the next flight, which 52 people were on standby; nobody got on," said Camille Jamshidi.
ABIA issued a ground delay at 9 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 2, that ended up getting extended until 5 p.m. Then, on Monday, flights averaged at least an hour behind schedule.
"I don't think I'm going to travel for a while because it's so horrible," said Camille Jamshidi.
What's next:
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that things will only get worse if the government does not reopen soon.
The FAA continues to maintain that safety is the priority even if it means travel delays and disruptions.
The Source: Information in this report comes from the Federal Aviation Administration and interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin's Katie Pratt