00:00The delays that we're talking about right now, how much of those are about snow in Chicago versus staffing issues?
00:05It's a combination. So we've seen, obviously, Chicago has been really affected by this.
00:10I mean, 25 percent of flights into and out of Chicago are about delayed and 15 percent are canceled.
00:15So it is pretty bad in Chicago and that sort of snow.
00:19But we also have sort of issues across the U.S. air system.
00:22And that's largely on account of the cancellations that are in effect at the moment, as well as the air traffic control shortages that are causing ground stops and delays.
00:32So it's a couple of issues that are sort of lining up and that's sort of having an impact on aviation.
00:38And that's sort of the this weekend was actually really bad for aviation in terms of cancellations.
00:45They were more than 10 percent. And that's because of the weather and other things.
00:48But we are seeing we are seeing this sort of issue continuing as long as this air traffic control shortage continues.
00:56You know, it's interesting. I went and looked at airline stocks as it seemed like we were maybe making progress to the government shutdown ending.
01:02We know that there are steps to go before that happens.
01:04But I looked at the S&P supercomposite airline index.
01:08There are about nine members. Seven are still down on the day.
01:12I mean, what does it take, though, for ultimately this to clear out?
01:16It's not like the government reopens and everything's fixed, is it?
01:19Exactly. I mean, that's the other issue.
01:21The fact that one is going to take a while for the airlines to ramp back up to their services.
01:25They're going to have to get sentiment as well, because, I mean, this shutdown and this restriction has had impact on sentiment for flyers.
01:34Would you would you book a flight?
01:36I'm holding off. We've got to go somewhere on Thursday night.
01:39I don't know how I'm going to get there. Maybe I'll drive.
01:41I'm flying tomorrow, so let's hope that goes off well.
01:44But it is something that it is something that on people's minds.
01:48I mean, I've had people texting me who I haven't spoken to in years asking me, should I get on a plane?
01:52Should I buy a ticket for Thanksgiving?
01:54And the simple answer is you don't really know, but there will be an impact.
01:58There will be some sort of airlines will be able to ramp back up depending on when the shutdown ends and when they can actually get back to staffing levels.
02:06Well, speaking of staffing, the president weighed in in a post on social media earlier today.
02:11He said that all air traffic controllers must get back to work now.
02:14Anyone who doesn't will be substantially docked.
02:17He said that he will be recommending a bonus of $10,000 per person for distinguished service to our country for those who did not take time off during this time.
02:25That's not the part that got my attention.
02:26The part that got my attention was if you want to leave service in the near future, please do not hesitate to do so.
02:31You will be quickly replaced by true patriots who will do a better job on the brand new state-of-the-art equipment.
02:37The replacement very quickly.
02:39The government has been trying to get air traffic controllers for years.
02:43This is a job that is very tough for the government to fill.
02:47Absolutely.
02:48I mean, it takes years to train air traffic controllers.
02:50So it's not just about losing staff who are qualified and capable of training for actually manning these guys.
02:58You also have the training of air traffic controllers, and they are in the midst of ramping up hiring, but it is a slow process.
03:05And you need those instructors to be the air traffic controllers to be well-qualified and ready to handle the airspace.
03:13So it isn't quite as simple as replacing someone who is not willing to work.
03:17So it will take a long time for ramping up air traffic controller staffing.
03:22I mean, remember, we were already facing air traffic controller shortages, and we had that sort of outage in Newark.
03:29We had multiple issues with staffing.
03:31So it's not going to be as easy as replacing people with whoever they want to.
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