Strong winds also caused other delays of nearly an hour that were extended over time. After that suspension was lifted, the FAA announced another ground stop at LaGuardia between 21:00 and 22:15 GMT (17:00-18:15 local time) for flights destined for Washington, Cleveland, Boston, or several Canadian airports, as well as for those scheduled to land at New York airports. The staffing shortage causing these delays is particularly severe in the states of New York, Indianapolis, and Boston, according to CNN. The New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) agency stated in a press release that the shortage of air traffic controllers at JFK has caused a halt to departures, and flights to New York are being held at their departure airports to avoid aerial congestion. It explains that delays and cancellations have limited arrivals at the airport to 36 aircraft per hour. The federal government shutdown, now in its 31st day, is threatening the proper functioning of air traffic at many airports across the country, especially as the deadline for them to receive their pay has passed without funds arriving. Air traffic controllers are considered essential employees and must continue to work their posts, often for long hours, even without receiving their paychecks. Nevertheless, this situation has led many of them to call in sick, citing health issues. The shutdown is already the second longest in the country's history, and is just a few days away from becoming the longest, which lasted 35 days. Washington, Oct 31 (EFE). - New York's John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports temporarily halted aircraft departures (ground stop) on Friday due to a staffing shortage caused by the federal government shutdown. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) first announced in an alert the temporary suspension of takeoffs from JFK, one of its two international airports, for about an hour and a half. One of the main reasons the government was reopened then, between 2018-2019, was due to the shortage of air traffic controllers.
