This week, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration announced that it would reduce air traffic by 10 per cent at 40 “high-volume” airports beginning Friday. Here’s what that could mean for Canadians.
Why are flights being reduced?
The U.S. government has been shut down since Oct. 1 in what is now the longest such event in the nation’s history. Air traffic controllers in the U.S. have thus been working unpaid for almost six weeks, leading to staffing shortages and flight delays.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford, citing staffing pressures and safety reports from pilots indicating growing fatigue among controllers, said he and U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy did not want to wait until the situation reached a crisis point.
“There’ll be frustration,”
. “But in the end, our sole role is to make sure that we keep this airspace as safe as possible.”
What airports are affected?
CBS News
receiving a list of the affected airports. They include major hubs such as Dallas/Forth Worth, Chicago O’Hare and all three New York area airports (Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark), as well as destinations as far-flung as Anchorage and Honolulu.
What does this mean for Canadian travellers?
John Gradek, a lecturer in aviation management at McGill University in Montreal, pointed out that it’s not just a flight from Toronto to New York that could be affected.
“We have an integrated airspace … between Canada and the U.S., and we have Canadian carriers flying domestic routes in Canada using the American airspace,” he told National Post. “So when you’re flying from Toronto to Vancouver, quite a bit of your trip is over U.S. airspace, and requires U.S. air traffic control to basically clear you through that space.”
He noted that upon leaving Pearson airport in Toronto, “within about 30 minutes you’re over U.S. airspace, and you basically leave U.S. airspace somewhere over either North Dakota or maybe Montana.”
Similarly, flights to the Caribbean, Latin America and other southern destinations will usually fly over U.S. airspace on the way.
Can Canadian airlines avoid U.S. airspace?
They can, but it’s not cheap.
“I can take a flight from Toronto to Vancouver and route over Canadian airspace,” said Gradek. “The only problem is it’s an extra hour.” That means additional fuel costs, staffing costs and scheduling issues.
“So the answer is, yeah, we can still fly it, but it’s not going to be something that the Canadian carriers want to do. They’re basically looking at trying to make money on these flights. And their margins are pretty thin as it is.”
What can Canadian travellers do?
Not much, other than avoiding travel to America entirely, including any flights that feature a U.S. stopover on the way to another country.
Flights that cross U.S. airspace could be delayed or even cancelled, but Gradek said it’s too early to know for sure.
“My suggestion is to make sure that whatever activity you have planned at your destination, there’s a bit of flexibility,” he said. “That you’re not trying to connect to a cruise ship 45 minutes after you arrive; that’s not going to work. You’re going to have to build in what I call a buffer into your arrival time, to take into account that there is a higher risk now of the flights being late.”
He added: “In general terms, Canadians can rest assured that the trans-border operations between Canada and the U.S. will happen. But they will probably be late.”
Could there be more closures?
Gradek thinks so. “Yeah, at this point in time, unfortunately, it’s going to get worse. I don’t think this 10 per cent is going to stand. I think we’re not done.”
But he’d rather be safe than sorry. “I don’t want a stressed out air traffic controller,” he said. “I want that controller to pay attention to everything that’s going on in and around my flight into the U.S. So if they’re not showing up for work I say: ‘Thank you very much. We’ll make do with what we’ve got.’”
Bedford hasn’t ruled out additional measures.
“The system is extremely safe today and will be extremely safe tomorrow,” he said. “If the pressures continue to build even after we take these measures, we’ll come back and take additional measures.”
What is Transport Canada’s reaction?
In an emailed statement to National Post, a spokesperson said: “
Transport Canada is aware of the situation in the United States and is closely monitoring it through its 24/7 Operations Centre.”
They added: “
Travellers departing from Canadian airports are advised to check the status of their flights in advance.”
What are Canadian airlines doing?
A spokesperson for WestJet told National Post: “WestJet’s operations have not been impacted by the ongoing government shutdown in the U.S. We are continuing to monitor the situation and proactively manage our operations to minimize any potential disruptions going forward.”
Air Canada told National Post: “We are monitoring the situation and awaiting more details on the planned reductions.”
It added: “At this point, we are maintaining our normal schedule but for customers who may be connecting onto U.S. domestic flights operated by our partner, United Airlines, we have put in place a goodwill policy to allow them to change or defer their travel with no change fee.”
Porter Airlines said there have been delays at some destinations, adding: “
Our team is managing the disruptions and we encourage passengers to check their flight status
before leaving for the airport. For those who have flexibility, complimentary moves to some U.S. destinations are available through Monday, when space permits.”
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