Air Travel Chaos: U.S. Faces Unprecedented Delays Amid Government Shutdown

More than 3.2 million U.S. airline passengers have been affected by delays and cancellations since a government shutdown began on October 1 due to a shortage of air traffic controllers, according to an airline group report released Monday.

Airlines for America, which includes major carriers such as American Airlines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and JetBlue Airways, revealed an increase to 16% in delays caused by staffing issues in October, compared to the typical 5% before the shutdown.

On Friday alone, more than 300,000 passengers were impacted, marking the single-worst day since the government impasse started, the group reported.