Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said Wednesday that America’s longest recorded government shutdown cost the airline roughly $200 million, the Associated Press reports.
The news marks the first disclosure by a U.S. airline regarding the shutdown’s financial impact.
Refunds “grew significantly,” Bastian said, while bookings slowed amid the uncertainty in air travel caused by the shutdown, which lasted 43 days.
Delta lost around 25 cents per share on Wednesday.
Beginning Oct. 1, the shutdown resulted in long delays at major airports and historic flight cancellations at 40 of America’s busiest airports as unpaid air traffic controllers missed work.
In the shutdown’s second month, the Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency order requiring commercial airlines to cancel up to 6% of their domestic flights, aiming to guarantee safe air travel.
