Delta Air Lines expected to take $25 million hit this month due to shutdown

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said the ongoing partial government shutdown will cost the airline $25 million in revenue in January alone.

Bastian told CNBC in an interview on Tuesday that the airline is seeing a cut in revenue this month due to a significant decrease in the number of government contractors and officials who are traveling.

Bastian also said that certifications for new aircrafts have been delayed since Federal Aviation Administration inspectors are not working as the shutdown entered its 25th day on Tuesday.

{mosads}The executive also commented on problems he’s been seeing in some airports as hundreds of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers across the country call in sick after being asked to work without pay during the shutdown.

The absences have led to long lines to get through security at airports like Atlanta’s Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport.

“Certainly we’re seeing longer lines in the airport. Yesterday, in Atlanta actually, we had some very long lines, 90-minute waits at the security queues, which is substantially longer than anticipated,” Bastian said.

Bastian also noted a statistic released by the TSA on Monday in which the agency revealed “they had about 7 percent unscheduled absence rate, which compares to the normal rate of 3 percent, which puts things into context.” 

However, said Delta Air Lines staff is also stepping in to help TSA workers with tasks like taking “on-security functions” off their hands.