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Economy

San Diego Int'l Airport operating 'normally' amid government shutdown

We're eight days into the government shutdown. KPBS reporter Jacob Aere has more on how federal employee furloughs are beginning to impact air travel and what it could mean for our region.

More than a week into the federal government shutdown, it's still business as usual at San Diego International Airport.

“San Diego International Airport continues to operate normally, and essential federal aviation personnel (including air traffic controllers, FAA operations, and related support staff) are anticipated to remain on duty,” said airport spokeswoman Nicole Hall in a statement.

She added there could be delays if “federal staffing constraints intensify.”

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At other nearby airports, it's been a different story.

On Monday, the Hollywood Burbank Airport had no air traffic controllers on site for about six hours, a situation that surprised former air traffic controller and manager Kevin Karpé.

“I have never come across where no one was available to staff a control tower during a furlough or shutdown,” Karpé said. He has more than 30 years of aviation experience in the Southern California region and is now CEO of Diverse Vector Aviation Consulting, based in San Marcos.

Burbank’s air traffic control was passed onto Southern California TRACON, a Terminal Radar Approach control facility in San Diego. Controllers there coordinated with pilots arriving and departing from Burbank Airport.

Former air traffic controller Kevin Karpé stands in front of the McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, Oct. 8, 2025.
Former air traffic controller Kevin Karpé stands in front of the McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, Oct. 8, 2025.

“Knowing what the redundancy of those procedures are, I was confident safety was going to be maintained,” Karpé said of Monday’s incident.

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There were still significant delays. Karpé said Monday's staffing shortage is emblematic of a system-wide problem.

He said there have been air traffic controller staffing shortages for decades. And a government shutdown can make things worse.

“If you have multiple people sick it just slows the system down, very much,” Karpé said.

He has been through two government shutdowns himself. Karpé said it's stressful to work through them.

“All the resources you have normally are not available to you. Whether it's staffing in the actual control room or control tower (that) may not be there,” he said.

On top of a lack of resources, there’s also the lack of income.

“It's very frustrating and if you're living where you need that paycheck — and many people do — you need to look at who's going to wait for their payment, what bill is due?” Karpé said.

Carts are parked out front of the air traffic control tower at McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, Oct. 8, 2025.
Carts are parked out front of the air traffic control tower at McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, Oct. 8, 2025.

KPBS reached out to the Federal Aviation Administration for comment and received an automated response saying, “Due to a lapse in funding, the FAA is not responding to routine media inquiries.”

An Oct. 6 statement on the FAA website said, in part, “there have been increased staffing shortages across the system. When that happens, the FAA slows traffic into some airports to ensure safe operations.”

Karpé said if the government shutdown continues, expect more flight delays nationwide.

“It definitely will increase as we go forward, with the lack of all the support ... with the lack of availability,” he said.

For now, San Diego International Airport is asking passengers to check their flight status before arriving and allow extra time for security screening.

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