A Delta Air Lines Airbus A220 aircraft prepares to take off from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, July 10, 2025.
Saul Loeb | Afp | Getty Images
Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC that the carrier’s operations are running smoothly despite the federal government shutdown.
More than 13,000 U.S. flights have been delayed this week, some of them due to a shortage of air traffic controllers, raising concerns about strain on the country’s aviation industry during the shutdown.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned Monday that the FAA is seeing a “slight increase” in illness calls from air traffic controllers.
He also said the closure exacerbates concerns about pressure on air traffic controllers, the shortage of which has irritated airline executives for years. Because of the shutdown, thousands of federal employees, including air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration officers at airports, are working without pay.
Delta’s CEO said in an interview that the airline has seen “no impact” so far since the shutdown, but called for a quick resolution.
Delta reported better-than-expected third-quarter results on Thursday and forecast a more profitable end to the year than analysts expected.
