Vance to meet with airline leaders as shutdown impacts aviation industry

FIRST ON FOX: Another aviation-related union is demanding lawmakers reopen the government as Vice President JD Vance prepares to hold a roundtable with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and airline industry leaders Thursday as shutdown woes mount, Fox News Digital has learned.

The roundtable will be held at the White House on Thursday afternoon and will feature Chris Sununu, CEO of Airlines for America and former governor of New Hampshire, and other airline executives, a White House official told Fox News Digital.

The roundtable comes as the “Democratic shutdown” has “severely” impacted the aviation industry, according to the White House official, including air traffic controllers who officially lost their first full pay and unions calling on lawmakers to pass a clean, continuing resolution.

The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, an independent union representing aviation maintenance technicians and other affected employees, called on lawmakers Wednesday to pass a “clean continuing resolution” and reopen the government.

FLIGHT DELAYS WORSEN AS UNPAID AIR CONTROLLERS FEEL THE PAIN OF GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

Vice President JD Vance speaks to reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Wednesday, October 1, 2025, in Washington DC. (Evan Vucci/Associated Press)

“On behalf of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) and our 4,400 members across the United States representing aircraft maintenance technicians at Alaska Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Horizon Air, Spirit Airlines and Sun Country Airlines, we urge Congress to end the government shutdown by passing a continuing resolution,” Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) National President Bret Oestreich said in a press release issued Wednesday.

“We stand with our brothers and sisters at Air Traffic Control and TSA who continue to ensure the safety of the traveling public while working for free,” he continued. “It’s time for Congress to come together again in a bipartisan way to pass a clean CR and support all the men and women of aviation who contribute to the safest national airspace system so we can all travel.”

The government shutdown has persisted since Oct. 1, when Senate lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal before a midnight deadline. The Trump administration and Republicans have since placed blame for the shutdown on Democrats, saying they were pushing to include taxpayer-funded medical benefits for illegal immigrants. Democrats have denied the claims and say Republicans have refused to negotiate on health care demands.

“We must end this lockdown as quickly as possible. Every day that Republicans refuse to negotiate to end this lockdown, the worse things get for Americans, and the clearer it becomes who is fighting for them,” the Senate minority leader said on October 9.

Vance has hammered home the argument that Democrats are to blame for the shutdown, including during his remarks at a Turning Point USA event Wednesday at Ole Miss.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks alongside Rep. Tom Emmer and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, October 23. (Eric Lee/Getty Images)

“The reality here is that there is a very simple bill that just reopens the government. It does it through the end of the year. It got every Republican in the House to support it, and then it got the support of 52 Republicans in the Senate and three Democrats in the Senate. But because of some weird Senate procedural rules, it requires a 60-vote threshold,” he said.

SEAN DUFFY warns of record strain on air traffic controllers ahead of first missed paycheck

“When you have all but two Republicans in both houses of Congress, I feel pretty confident. know that I am Partizan. I know I have an answer next to my name, but I feel really good saying that the shutdown is the Democrats’ fault because we voted over and over again for openness,” he added.

The shutdown comes as Americans prepare to travel for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, with the White House previously telling Fox News Digital that as the shutdown continues, it “threatens to ruin the holidays.”

The Air Line Pilots Association, the world’s largest airline pilots union, also called on lawmakers to reopen the government earlier in October, with the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association issuing a similar statement later in October, urging lawmakers to pass a “clean continuing resolution” and reopen the federal government, while pointing the finger at the state of air traffic controllers during a shutdown.

Passenger planes queue for takeoff at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, Wednesday, October 1, 2025. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

The shutdown has rattled families preparing to temporarily lose federal food aid, while small business owners lose billions of dollars in funding supported by the Small Business Administration, and about 750,000 federal employees have been put out of work.

AMERICANS COULD FACE AIRPORT CHAOS IF DEMS DO NOT END SHUTDOWN, TRUMP OFFICIAL WARNS

When it comes to air travel, huge hubs such as Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Newark, New Jersey, have experienced delays in recent weeks as air traffic controllers, employed by the Federal Aviation Administration, face staffing shortages.

Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, speaks during a news conference at LaGuardia Airport in New York on October 28. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Air traffic controllers lost their first full salary starting Tuesday.

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“I’ve made it clear to our air traffic controllers: They need to show up for work. They’re doing a really important job for our country, and they need to show up. But I’m not going to lie to anyone and say they’re not feeling stress,” Department of Transportation Chief Duffy said at a news conference at LaGuardia Airport on Tuesday. “The fact that they’re working, and oftentimes, they’re heads of household, they’re the sole earners in their home, they have families, and they’re struggling to pay their bills.”