Govt shutdown strains emerge in US air travel system
The strain of a 34-day partial govt shutdown is weighing on the nation's air-travel system, both the federal workers who make it go and the airlines that depend on them. Air traffic controllers and airport security agents continue to work without pay — they will miss a second biweekly paycheck Friday — but high absentee rates raise the threat of long airport lines, or worse. Unions that represent air traffic controllers, flight attendants and pilots are growing concerned about safety with the shutdown well. The TSA said 7.5% of its airport security officers scheduled to work Wednesday did not show up. That is down from Sunday's 10% absent rate but more than double the 3% rate of the comparable Wednesday in 2018. TSA has resorted to sending backup officers to beef up staffing at some airports and at times closing a couple of checkpoints at major airports. <br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2019-01-25/general/govt-shutdown-strains-emerge-in-us-air-travel-system
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Govt shutdown strains emerge in US air travel system
The strain of a 34-day partial govt shutdown is weighing on the nation's air-travel system, both the federal workers who make it go and the airlines that depend on them. Air traffic controllers and airport security agents continue to work without pay — they will miss a second biweekly paycheck Friday — but high absentee rates raise the threat of long airport lines, or worse. Unions that represent air traffic controllers, flight attendants and pilots are growing concerned about safety with the shutdown well. The TSA said 7.5% of its airport security officers scheduled to work Wednesday did not show up. That is down from Sunday's 10% absent rate but more than double the 3% rate of the comparable Wednesday in 2018. TSA has resorted to sending backup officers to beef up staffing at some airports and at times closing a couple of checkpoints at major airports. <br/>
