Continuing chaos in airports following the recent government shutdown. Graphic by Ollie Fitzgerald.
OLLIE FITZGERALD | ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR | ofitzgerald@butler.edu
CHARLOTTE HARGROVE | STAFF REPORTER | chargrove@butler.edu
Many airports have seen major delays in air travel following the government shutdown, which started Oct. 1 and ended Nov. 10 — making it the longest shutdown in U.S. history.
TSA and air traffic employees had been required to continue working without pay, causing long lines and leading many airlines to cancel and delay flights. With these problems surrounding the major components of airports, travel is expected to be disrupted through Butler’s Thanksgiving break, even after the shutdown has come to an end.
The government shutdown ended after the House of Representatives passed the bill, ending in a 222 to 209 vote, and later signed it into law that night. Even though the shutdown has officially ended, backlogs, staffing shortages and delays take more time to come back from.
During a government shutdown, many federal workers experience issues with work because of a law called the Antideficiency Act. The act states that federal workers cannot work without an approved budget, meaning that agencies such as TSA must still work, but without full or any pay until funding returns.
With the Indianapolis International Airport being one of the major airports affected by the travel cuts, Butler students are among the many experiencing issues getting home for the holidays.
Sophomore political science major Liam Devine spoke about his experience with flight issues and his worries about getting home to Maine for the holidays.
“I usually take the bus down to Boston and fly from Boston directly to Indianapolis,” Devine said. “I actually ended up booking a hotel room in Buffalo, New York [for this trip] because I was preparing to have to drive home.”
Devine’s concerns stemmed from news reports that showed major airports cancelling dozens of flights.
“It was [around] a week or two ago I saw that they were cutting flights by 10% across 40 major airports,” Devine said. “Two of which were Indianapolis and Boston, and so I realized that might start to be a problem.”
Devine is not the only out-of-state student whose typically short flights could turn into long drives and connections.
First-year health sciences major Margot Cameron booked her flight before the shutdown, but still has concerns about her travel plans — specifically regarding coming back to campus through the Nashville airport.
“I’m from Franklin, Tennessee, so I normally just book a flight home, because it’s [only] an hour if I get a direct flight.” Cameron said, “Worst case scenario, [my parents said] ‘we’ll just drive up and get you.’”
Some students are constantly double-checking their flights and coming up with backup plans if things suddenly change.
“I have a car here, and driving home is an option,” Devine said. “I just was hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst, which would [be] driving [the 16 hours].”
First-year kinesiology major Jaclyn Surver is from Miami, Fla. With multiple connections involved in her route home, a missed or canceled flight could mean an upward of a 17-hour drive.
Although Surver is worried, she encourages students to try and stay hopeful and be flexible with their plans.
“[I’m] just trying to stay positive and trying to do the flights [instead of driving] because it’s the easiest way to get back home.” Surver said, “If I need to take multiple connecting flights, then that [will have to be] fine.”
Devine further emphasized Surver’s point, citing that the delays are not necessarily the fault of specific airports and airlines.
“It’s tough for the airlines, because they don’t exactly have a say in this,” Devine said. “[They] need someone up in the tower, and there’s no one there. [These situations are] why you plan ahead, because you don’t want to be left scrambling [if something goes wrong.”
