U.S. airlines and aviation groups are warning Congress that a government shutdown at midnight would disrupt air travel, jeopardize safety and stall efforts to modernize the nation’s air traffic control system.
The warning came in a letter from the Modern Skies Coalition — which includes Airlines for America, the trade group for United, Delta, American, Southwest and other carriers — along with airports, pilots, controllers and manufacturers. The coalition said a shutdown would force the FAA to suspend hiring and training, delay safety initiatives and create costly backlogs across the aviation system.
“Government shutdowns harm the U.S. economy and degrade the redundancies and margins of safety that our National Airspace System (NAS) is built upon,” the group wrote. “In fact, short-term shutdowns of just a few days, or even threatened shutdowns that are averted in the eleventh hour negatively affect the NAS and the traveling public.”
The letter also underscored the broader economic risk, noting that the U.S. aviation industry contributes more than 5% of GDP — $1.37 trillion in 2023 — and supports over 10 million jobs. The group said that a 35-day shutdown in 2018–19 alone cost the economy $3 billion in lost activity that was never recovered, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
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The coalition warned that a shutdown would freeze FAA hiring and training. During previous shutdowns, the agency was forced to close its training academy in Oklahoma City, a move that worsened staffing shortages once operations resumed.
The FAA is about 3,800 air traffic controllers short of its targeted staffing levels, and the Modern Skies Coalition said it has supported Transport Secretary Sean Duffy’s move to increase numbers.
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“We strongly supported Congress’s $12.5 billion downpayment toward air traffic control modernization, and we continue to advocate in support of Secretary Duffy’s acknowledgment that additional funding of at least $19 billion will be needed to completely build a new air traffic control system,” the letter said. “A government shutdown at this stage would jeopardize the important progress that we all have made on these efforts thus far.”
House Republicans advanced a short-term funding plan, but the Senate rejected it, citing the lack of health care subsidy extensions and spending cuts opposed by Democrats. Negotiations between the parties remain stalled.
On Monday, Republican and Democratic leaders left a meeting with President Donald Trump without an agreement to keep the government funded, raising the likelihood of a partial shutdown set to begin at midnight tonight.
The hour-long White House session produced no breakthrough, with both sides refusing to shift from their positions.
Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind and Alex Miller and Reuters contributed to this report.
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