Sununu: Air travelers should 'pack your patience'

Airlines for America CEO Chris Sununu, a Republican and former governor of New Hampshire, said Sunday that air travelers should “pack your patience” as the government shutdown drags on.

“People should still plan on having their flights. But we always say, pack your patience, give yourself a little more time,” Sununu told Chris Stirewalt on NewsNation’s "The Hill Sunday." 

Airlines for America is a trade association representing major U.S. airlines. Sununu joined the organization last month.

According to the flight-tracking site FlightAware, there were 5,200 flights within, into or out of the U.S. delayed on Sunday, with nearly 100 such flights canceled. On Saturday, more than 5,700 such flights were delayed, with more than 320 canceled. 

It is unclear, however, how many of those delays and cancellations were due to staffing shortages. 

Amid the shutdown, which began on Oct. 1, air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration agents are working without pay. In Janury 2019, during the most recent government shutdown, an increase in air traffic controllers taking sick days led to travel issues along the East Coast.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told Fox Business on Oct. 9 that the average share of delays stemming from controller shortages, which was 5 percent before the shutdown, had increased to 53 percent.

Sununu acknowledged an increase in delays but said that “nobody should cancel” their Thanksgiving travel plans. 

“We’ll see where it goes, some slight delays across the country,” Sununu added. “May increase a little bit this week, but overall there’s no cancellations [due to shortages] and safety is absolutely paramount.”