KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Air traffic controllers began taking mandatory furloughs on Sunday, which means travelers could encounter flight delays of about 10 minutes or more for flights at major hubs, including at the Kansas City International Airport.
The mandatory furloughs are a result of the sequestration — or the forced government spending cuts — that went into effect in March for every federal government agency.
Starting Sunday, April 21, controllers will lose one day of work every other week. With fewer controllers in the tower every day at airports across the country, some in the airline industry predict there will be widespread flight delays and cancellations. But that didn’t materialize on the first day of the sequester at KCI. Information from the FAA shows most flights were on time. But the FAA does warn planes will have to take off and land less frequently so as not to overwork the remaining controllers on duty. Some runways might have to close down if there aren’t enough controllers working.
Airline trade groups and the country’s biggest pilots union filed a lawsuit against the FAA Friday, April 19, to try and stop the furloughs, predicting they would delay or cancel flights for as many as one out of every three airline passengers across the country. And the airlines want the FAA to find other ways to cut costs rather than with furloughs.
