How pilots are talking to passengers about flight delays during the shutdown

"I don't really care what your political persuasion is, but you should really call your senator, because I'll tell ya, this is costing the airlines millions of dollars. So, it's frustrating. It's really frustrating for me. Because right now, it's gonna cost about two hours of our lives on the ground before we even take off. Spend all that gas, all that money, and it just rolls into the rest of the system."

"So right now, we're at a 4% reduction in flight capacity. Next week, we go to 10. Last night, I had a six-hour delay in Houston, and the weather was perfect. It's because the air traffic controllers aren't getting paid. So, it's a weekend!"

"I know we probably have quite a few nervous flyers today. It is perfectly understandable,"

Air traffic controller absences tied to a government shutdown have produced mass cancellations and widespread flight delays across the country. Pilots have publicly addressed passengers, citing long tarmac waits, substantial fuel and time losses, and reduced system capacity. One pilot reported roughly 30 planes waiting and about 90 minutes to takeoff, and said delays can cost crews hours on the ground. Reported reductions in flight capacity were 4% now and projected to reach 10% the following week. Pilots urged political action and directly linked some delays to unpaid air traffic controllers.

Read at Business Insider