A failure to prevent a government shutdown this week could cause massive chaos at airports over Thanksgiving in what is expected to be the busiest travel period since before the coronavirus pandemic, the Washington Examiner reported Monday.
A shutdown would mean that some 50,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials and 13,000 Federal Aviation Administration air traffic controllers would have to work without pay until the government is funded again, and there would be massive cancellations and delays if they decided not to show up for work.
The TSA has said it is expecting some 30 million travelers between November 18 and 28.
“We are quickly approaching what is forecasted to be the busiest travel period since before the pandemic, and it’s critical that policymakers work together to avoid a shutdown and support continued, safe, and efficient airport operations,” Airports Council International-North America President and CEO Kevin Burke told The Hill.
A TSA spokesperson added that workers "will do their best to meet wait time standards of 10 minutes and under for TSA PreCheck lanes and 30 minutes and under for standard screening lanes at security checkpoints. But an extended shutdown could mean longer wait times at airports.”
The spokesperson stressed that “it’s very hard for anybody to go for 20 days, 30 days, 40 days or longer without receiving a paycheck. It impacts the ability of people to get to work, to pay to put gas in their vehicles, to pay for parking. It impacts their ability to pay the individuals that provide care for their children."
An analysis by Tourism Economics showed that a government shutdown could also cost the U.S. travel industry around $140 million per day. The estimate includes the closure of national parks and museums and a decrease in travel via air and rail, with the air travel industry alone losing about $36 million a day, the Washington Examiner reported.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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