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LAX flights delayed due to staffing shortage
Travelers going in and out of LAX are once again dealing with delays as employees continue to call out amid the ongoing government shutdown.
LOS ANGELES - Big delays for flights arriving at LAX this Sunday evening.
The FAA issued a ground delay citing "staffing" issues.
The delay at LAX comes as people feel the impact of staffing shortages at airports across the country. Air traffic controllers and other federal workers are working without pay due to the government shutdown, which started Oct. 1.
Some families were waiting a little longer than usual for their loved ones to arrive at LAX on Sunday.
"We’re picking up our daughter and her family and they flew out of Arcata and they had to sit there on the tarmac for about a half hour," a woman told FOX 11.
From Boston to Newark to Denver, flights arriving at LAX were experiencing an average delay of about one hour after the FAA issued a ground delay citing "staffing" as the issue.
"We really can’t wait for the government shutdown to end for many, many reasons, but you also just learn to roll with the punches," a woman waiting at baggage claim told FOX 11.
Airports across the country are seeing staffing shortages at their air traffic control towers during the shutdown. In October, the FAA issued a temporary ground stop at LAX for departing flights to Oakland due to staffing issues.
"I was thinking it might be more of a problem for Thanksgiving or Christmas because there are so many flights then, but I wasn’t expecting it to be an issue this soon," one traveler told FOX 11.
Many travelers, including those who were delayed Sunday flying into LAX, are hoping the government shutdown ends soon so some federal workers don’t have to work without pay.
As of Sunday evening, there were also staffing issues impacting flights at San Diego Airport. A ground delay was issued with an average delay of about an hour.