controller

“Stop your altitude climb,” controllers told the American Airlines pilot shortly thereafter.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned Tuesday that the chaos could get worse by the weekend if the shutdown persists, with air traffic controllers unable to be paid.

You have advocated “freeing” controllers by spinning the system off of government—the Canadian model.

Cuts have been made as the nation's busiest airports reduce their capacity to cope with shutdown-related sickness by air traffic controllers, who have been working without pay during the shutdown.

Just how rapidly normal airline operations can be expected to resume, however, is up for debate — particularly as some fear a wave of resignations among air-traffic controllers.