NDTV’s travel desk reported on 22 October that more than 23,000 flights were delayed across U.S. airports in the past week as unpaid air-traffic controllers and TSA officers took gig-economy jobs to make ends meet during the federal shutdown. The Federal Aviation Administration cited staffing shortages at hubs including Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta and Newark—gateways heavily used by Indian carriers and code-share partners.
With India–US corporate travel rebounding to 98 % of pre-pandemic levels, TMCs say average door-to-door times have ballooned by three hours, forcing executives to depart a day early for critical Monday morning meetings. Airlines have waived change fees for select itineraries, but premium-cabins are sold out through early November, leaving cost-conscious SMEs scrambling for circuitous routings via Europe.
Indian passport holders transiting the U.S. for onward Latin-American assignments should monitor minimum-connection-time alerts; missed connections could trigger ESTA re-authorisations and hotel costs that insurers may not cover under ‘force majeure’. Travel advisers recommend booking contingency ‘Plan B’ refundable segments on Canadian routes until the shutdown impasse resolves.
While the U.S. House has passed a temporary funding bill, unions warn that back-pay processing could still hamper staffing into early November—meaning continued knock-on effects for Diwali-period VFR and business traffic from India.
With India–US corporate travel rebounding to 98 % of pre-pandemic levels, TMCs say average door-to-door times have ballooned by three hours, forcing executives to depart a day early for critical Monday morning meetings. Airlines have waived change fees for select itineraries, but premium-cabins are sold out through early November, leaving cost-conscious SMEs scrambling for circuitous routings via Europe.
Indian passport holders transiting the U.S. for onward Latin-American assignments should monitor minimum-connection-time alerts; missed connections could trigger ESTA re-authorisations and hotel costs that insurers may not cover under ‘force majeure’. Travel advisers recommend booking contingency ‘Plan B’ refundable segments on Canadian routes until the shutdown impasse resolves.
While the U.S. House has passed a temporary funding bill, unions warn that back-pay processing could still hamper staffing into early November—meaning continued knock-on effects for Diwali-period VFR and business traffic from India.
