Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Sunday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth offered air traffic controllers from reserves amid a shortage during the government shutdown.
“I had a text from the Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, yesterday, who’s made an offer that he has air traffic controllers in the reserves, if we could deploy them — and I don’t know that we can — we got to see what air spaces they worked in,” Duffy told anchor Shannon Bream on “Fox News Sunday.”
But he’ll step in and try to provide some relief in the skies. We’re trying to minimize the pain for the American people,” he added.
The Hill has reached out to the Pentagon about Duffy’s comments.
Duffy said on Friday that flight reductions could increase by 20 percent if the government shutdown continues, as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has started decreasing flights by 10 percent due to staffing shortages among air traffic controllers.
