WASHINGTON — Expect major air-travel delays, especially at New York airports, if deep federal spending cuts kick in on Friday, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood warned yesterday.
“Flights to major cities like New York, Chicago and San Francisco and others could experience delays of up to 90 minutes during peak hours,” LaHood said.
He predicted that “it’s going to be very painful for the flying public” because some air-traffic controllers and other airport workers will have to be furloughed.
He described a series of crippling budget moves:
* More than 100 air-traffic control towers will be shut down at airports with light traffic, including Boca Raton, Fla., Joplin, Mo., and Hilton Head, SC.
* The “vast majority” of the FAA’s roughly 47,000 workers will get furloughed without pay at least one day per pay period.
* Airlines will be forced to cancel flights.
The cuts, known as sequestration, indiscriminately slash $85 billion this year and $1.2 trillion over a decade from military and federal agencies.
President Obama and Congress created the sequester in 2011 to force a budget deal. It never materialized.