Potential government shutdown will likely cause delays, headaches at San Diego Airport

As the possibility of a government shutdown looms, thousands of federal jobs and numerous services we rely on, like the airline industry, could be impacted.

The shutdown would disrupt pay for federal transportation workers. It could also mean more delays at the airport. 

Thousands of air traffic controllers and TSA officers nationwide would have to work without pay.

"We're talking about people being afraid of whether they're going to be able to pay their mortgages,” Robert Mack with the American Federation of Government Employees said.

His union represents numerous TSA workers in San Diego who worry about the effects the government shutdown could have on their livelihoods.

"You have a single parent of three worrying about what they're going to do when they can't pay their bills because I-owe-yous don't work. A check is a check,” Mack said.

He said the shutdown could impact 600 TSA workers in San Diego.

"The last shutdown we had was 35 days. I don't know about you, but most people can't afford to have three paychecks missing, especially in San Diego, one of the most expensive cities to live in,” Mack said.

The Federal Aviation Administration said House and Senate bills fund 1,800 of the air traffic controllers.

“I want you to imagine the pressure that a controller is already under every time they take their position at work and then imagine the added stress of coming to that job with a household and a family that can no longer count on that paycheck. That’s the impact of a shutdown,” U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said.

In a statement, the FAA said, “If we shut down for a couple of weeks, it takes a lot more than a couple of weeks to recover, particularly on the training side.”

Airline customers in the U.S. will experience more delays and longer wait times amid a shutdown, according to the U.S. Travel Association.