United Airlines CEO warns of prolonged shutdown

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said the federal government shutdown could hurt bookings if it continues.

Despite the financial impasse, essential federal employees, including Transportation Security Administration officers and air traffic controllers, are required to work without pay. The shutdown began October 1 after Congress failed to pass a funding bill.

Speaking on an earnings conference call Thursday, Kirby said the shutdown so far has not had an impact on the carrier’s business.

“I think at least for the first couple of weeks, people thought the problem was going to be resolved, so they just continued business as usual,” he said. “But over time, people read the headlines and say, ‘this isn’t going to be fixed anytime soon.’ People are starting to lose faith in the government and its ability to solve this problem. And that’s going to start to impact bookings.”

Kirby said there was no exact timeline for when the airline might start seeing an impact, but added that “with each day that passes, the risk to the U.S. economy increases. So I hope we avoid an unforced error here.”

Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian issued a similar warning last week about how a prolonged shutdown could affect air travel, but stressed that the airline’s operations had not been affected.

The closure raised concerns about air traffic controllers’ already limited staffing, the Federal Aviation Administration said. Last week, understaffing at some FAA facilities disrupted flights at airports, including in Nashville, Tennessee, and Burbank, California.

Members of the union that represents U.S. air traffic controllers distributed leaflets outside New York’s LaGuardia Airport on Tuesday, as well as in Washington, D.C. and Chicago, to urge the public to ask lawmakers to end the shutdown.

A more than month-long shutdown that began in late 2018 ended hours after a shortage of air traffic controllers hampered air travel in the New York area.