Isolated flight delays may spread as air traffic controllers go without pay during shutdown

Air traffic controllers missed their paychecks Tuesday because of the ongoing government shutdown, raising concerns that flight delays could multiply as increasingly stressed-out controllers call out sick.

Recent absences have led to a number of isolated delays around the country because the Federal Aviation Administration was already extremely short on controllers prior to the shutdown. The FAA restricts the number of flights landing and taking off at an airport anytime there is a shortage of controllers to ensure safety.