San Diego Airport delays: Staffing issues impact flights

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Travelers at the San Diego Airport can expect delays Sunday night as airports across the country deal with staffing issues.

Most flights at the San Diego International Airport (SAN) were delayed an average of 59 minutes on Sunday, Nov. 2 from several major airports around the country due to lack of staffing, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Houston, Cleveland, Denver, Seattle, Boston, Miami, Indianapolis and more, according to the FAA.

The FAA issued a ground delay at 3:30 p.m. Sunday for SAN which lasts until midnight, citing lack of staffing at several major air traffic control centers including the San Diego tower.

The San Diego Airport website was showing nearly all flights arriving to and departing from SAN as delayed Sunday night.

FAA U.S. Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCCs) with delayed departures to SAN Sunday night:

• ZLA: Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center (Palmdale, California)
• ZAU: Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center (Aurora, Illinois)
• ZLC: Salt Lake City Air Route Traffic Control Center (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• ZTL: Atlanta Air Route Traffic Control Center (Hampton, Georgia)
• ZDC: Washington Air Route Traffic Control Center (Leesburg, Virginia)
• ZNY: New York Air Route Traffic Control Center (Ronkonkoma, New York)
• ZHU: Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center (Houston, Texas)
• ZJX: Jacksonville Air Route Traffic Control Center (Jacksonville, Florida)
• ZFW: Fort Worth Air Route Traffic Control Center (Fort Worth, Texas)
• ZOB: Cleveland Air Route Traffic Control Center (Oberlin, Ohio)
• ZDV: Denver Air Route Traffic Control Center (Aurora, Colorado)
• ZOA: Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center (Oakland, California)
• ZSE: Seattle Air Route Traffic Control Center (Auburn, Washington)
• ZBW: Boston Air Route Traffic Control Center (Nashua, New Hampshire)
• ZMA: Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center (Miami, Florida)
• ZKC: Kansas City Air Route Traffic Control Center (Olathe, Kansas)
• ZME: Memphis Air Route Traffic Control Center (Memphis, Tennessee)
• ZID: Indianapolis Air Route Traffic Control Center (Indianapolis, Indiana)
• ZAB: Albuquerque Air Route Traffic Control Center (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
• ZMP: Minneapolis Air Route Traffic Control Center (Farmington, Minnesota) 

The FAA took to X on Halloween to inform the public that nearly 13,000 air traffic controllers have been working without pay for 31 days because of the government shutdown and that Halloween weekend had a surge in callouts of employees that caused staffing impacts at airports across the country. The FAA said half of its Core 30 facilities were experiencing staffing shortages, and nearly 80% of air traffic controllers were absent at New York–area facilities.

"The shutdown must end so that these controllers receive the pay they’ve earned and travelers can avoid further disruptions and delays," the FAA said in part.

The FAA said during the staffing shortages they would be reducing the flow of air traffic to maintain safety, which can result in flight delays or cancellations.

The San Diego Airport on X Sunday night issued a travel alert and advised travelers to arrive early as lines were longer than usual.

The Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) also had an active ground delay Sunday night up to 61 minutes due to lack of staffing.

For real-time updates at U.S. airports due to staffing, weather, or other factors, visit nasstatus.faa.gov and check with your airline before going to the airport.

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