more at https://splinternews.com/its-happening-1832051400

The Federal Aviation Administration grounded all flights headed to New York’s
LaGuardia Airport on Friday, and thousands of unpaid IRS workers didn’t show up
for work (see below), marking what is perhaps a turning point in the ongoing
government shutdown.

Citing safety concerns stemming from a shortage of air traffic control staff,
the FAA’s decision to halt all incoming traffic to one of the country’s largest
airports is a significant, if not altogether unexpected development as the
government shutdown is expected to drag into its sixth week. Earlier this week
the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the Air Line Pilots
Association, and Association of Flight Attendants-CWA issued a joint statement
regarding their “growing concern for the safety and security of our members, our
airlines, and the traveling public due to the government shutdown.”

In an interview published on Splinter prior to the FAA’s decision on Friday,
Association of Flight Attendants head Sara Nelson emphasized the airline
industry’s overall commitment to safety, and worried that the ongoing shutdown
had put that commitment in jeopardy.

“We are rapidly approaching a breaking point,” Nelson said, when asked whether
talks of suspending services had been limited to just her union, or the airline
industry as a whole.

On Twitter, the FAA attempted to downplay the airport delays, attributing it to
a “slight increase in sick leave at two facilities.”


https://www.fly.faa.gov/flyfaa/flyfa...p?ARPT=EWR&p=0



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