Travelers could be experiencing longer waits at the airport this week because of furloughs on air traffic controllers by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The furloughs are part of Sequestration, the automatic budget cuts that went into effect last month to balance the federal budget.
The FAA said in a statement that travelers can expect to see “a wide range of delays that will change throughout the day depending on staffing and weather related issues.”
Harrisburg International Spokesperson Scott Miller said HIA hasn’t seen much of a delay. He also said it is hard to tell where delays are coming from,”The number one cause of delays is weather, the second is usually mechanical issues,” he said.
While most air traffic controllers will lose one day of work every other week, Miller says those at HIA will be adjusting shifts instead of employees. They are also not filling positions when people leave.
FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said FAA officials could find no other way to cut $637 million from the agency’s budget as required by the sequester. FAA officials have said they have no choice but to furlough all 47,000 agency employees, including nearly 15,000 controllers.
The FAA has said that planes will have to take off and land less frequently, so the remaining controllers on duty will not get overloaded.
If you are flying anytime soon you are asked to check on your flight for delays and cancellations, and arrive early in preparation.
For flight delay information through the Air Traffic Control System Command Center click here