The Department of Transportation may close some parts of the airspace if enough air traffic controllers don’t show up to work, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Tuesday.

Secretary Duffy said there will be a 10% reduction in airspace capacity at 40 locations across the country as staffing shortages strain the FAA amid the longest government shutdown in history.

The Department of Transportation might be forced to shut down the airspace in certain parts of the country if the government shutdown continues into next week.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the agency may need to close "certain parts" of the nation's airspace if the shutdown drags on.

Secretary Sean Duffy issued the warning amid a growing number of flight delays at airports across the country.

The Transportation Department plans to reduce flights by 10% at 40 airports amid the ongoing government shutdown as the Thanksgiving holiday approaches.

Airports across the country have already seen delays and cancellations due to staffing shortages as the shutdown continues.

As the longest-ever government shutdown continues, Transportation Secretary predicted ‘more significant disruptions’

Secretary Duffy said there will be a 10% reduction in capacity at 40 locations across the country as staffing shortages strain the FAA amid the longest government shutdown in history.

The last time the US closed parts of its air space was in the wake of the 11 September 2001 attacks. View on euronews

Senate Democrats have voted 13 times against a stopgap measure funding the government at current levels until Nov. 21.

Several airlines are offering the option to rebook or issue a refund for customers whose flights are impacted by the reductions.