Hollywood Burbank Airport in Los Angeles was unmanned for several hours due to staffing shortage as a result of the shutdown. The development triggered
an angry reaction from California Governor Gavin Newsom, who slammed President Donald Trump for the shutdown, which triggered the staffing shortage. The US government went into a shutdown on October 1, after Trump's Republican Party failed to reach an agreement with Democrats for the spending bill. The Federal Aviation Administration reported the staffing shortage from 4:14 pm local time and last till 10 PM. During this, Burbank Airport's ATC tower was left unmanned. ABC News, quoting air traffic controllers, reported that the Southern California TRACON in San Diego have been directed to communicate with pilots landing and taking off from the airport. Newsom slams Trump California Governor Gavin Newsom took to X to slam Trump for the shutdown. "Thanks, @realDonaldTrump! Burbank Airport has ZERO air traffic controllers from 4:15pm to 10pm today because of YOUR government shutdown," wrote Newsom.
Shutdown to Worsen Conditions at Airports
As per an FAA notice, many staff called in sick to work since they will not be paid. Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers are required to turn up for work during the shutdown, a Reuters report said.
During the 35-day shutdown in 2019, many air traffic controllers and TSA officers at leading airports skipped out of work due to no paychecks.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has said that air traffic staffing has been cut by 50% in some areas since the shutdown started last week.
There is little sign of progress in talks between Republicans and Democrats to get the government back in running. President Donald Trump said federal worker layoffs were already happening, blaming Democrats for the impasse.
Asked when workers would be fired, Trump told reporters: "It's taking place right now and it's all because of the Democrats."
He added, "The Democrats are causing the loss of a lot of jobs," but did not specify which agencies would be affected.
