Government shutdown ends but Milwaukee flyers still face cancellations

Government shutdown ends, flight cancellations remain

The nation’s six-week government shutdown – the longest in U.S. history – came to an end Wednesday night, but its fallout is still rippling through the aviation system.

MILWAUKEE - The nation’s six-week government shutdown – the longest in U.S. history – came to an end Wednesday night, but its fallout is still rippling through the aviation system.

What we know:

TSA officers resigned during the stalemate, and more than 10,000 flights were canceled in the past week.

Airline schedules remain thin with Thanksgiving approaching. Cancellations are already affecting Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, including flights to Boston, Newark and O’Hare.

What they're saying:

Darrell English, a TSA officer and union representative for workers in Wisconsin and Illinois, said the loss of experienced staff has created lasting gaps.

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"Those people that have years in and experience level, and you lose that, that becomes a gap because that's the experience level that takes years to build up to be able to replace," English said.

Air traffic controllers also worked without pay throughout the shutdown. Adam Uhan, a commercial pilot, former Air Force pilot and leader of The Pilot Network with about 30,000 members, said the controllers remained steady through the strain.

"The most unsung of the heroes, the people that nobody ever sees or meets are the air traffic controllers," Uhan said. "They did outstanding work throughout the shutdown."

Uhan said frustration with the system was felt on the ground and in the cockpit.

"If you feel frustrated, your crew, the people that are working the gate, the people who are working in the bags, the air traffic controllers, they feel your frustration," he said.

Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration directed major cuts at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports – beginning with a 4% reduction and originally slated to reach 10%. With the shutdown over, the Department of Transportation capped the cuts at 6% to relieve the pressure on controllers. 

Dig deeper:

Even so, Uhan said he felt safe in the skies.

"Safety was never, ever an issue in my mind. What was an issue in my mind was the people that were involved and their wellbeing. And as things progressed, if they got worse, more people were going to have to find other options to make those ends meet," he said. "I never feared for my safety because I know the professionals that are involved, and they are simply some of the best people I've ever worked with in my life who could have done a number of other things at a very high level, but they chose this path because aviation is just, it's like a calling."

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English cautioned that workers face long-term financial consequences.

"People have to realize that this is not going to be a quick fix, because officers had had devastated their credit ratings, their livelihood. They got behind on bills because of this. And it's going to take a while for them to actually get themselves out of this hole. An additional on top of that. This may repeat itself in January," English said. "They're still struggling to get out of this hole. So when you see these officers, don't think that, okay, you're going to get paid, you should be good. It's not good because these officers now are in debt, to someone or some other agency that they owe money to. So be patient with them. They still have a lot of issues on their mind or how they want to get things paid back. And again, they had that problem down the line in January. How do I prepare for that?"

What's next:

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said air traffic controllers may receive partial pay within days. The Trump administration said backpay for federal workers could begin this weekend and continue into the middle of next week.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem handed out $10,000 bonus checks to TSA agents she said "served with exemplary service" in Texas on Thursday, with more bonuses potentially on the way. Air traffic controllers may also receive bonuses as flights try to ramp back toward normal levels ahead of the holidays.