Rip-off Las Vegas faces another huge tourism slump thanks to government shutdown, as Americans avoid flying over fears of travel chaos and plane crashes

Las Vegas faces another huge tourism slump as Americans avoid flying over fears that the government shutdown will cause chaos and delays at airports.

The federal government shut down Wednesday morning after lawmakers deadlocked and missed the deadline for reaching a deal to fund programs and services.

Essential workers including TSA agents, air traffic controllers, FBI investigators and CIA officers are expected to keep working, but will not be paid until after the shutdown ends.

Despite airports remaining operational, 60 percent of Americans have indicated they would ‘cancel or avoid trips by air’ in the event of a shutdown, according to a recent survey cited by the US Travel Association.

An influx in cancellations could be detrimental to the Vegas economy, which is heavily fueled by travel and tourism.

Nearly 8 percent fewer visitors came to Vegas through August this year, according to city data, and Harry Reid International Airport recorded 1.7 million fewer travelers.

Lawmakers and experts alike warn the federal government shutdown, which could see nearly a quarter of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employees furloughed, would only worsen the downward trend.

The shutdown will force the FAA to suspend hiring and training and delay safety initiatives, according to experts. It could also cause increased wait times at airports, flight delays and cancellations, and delays to repairs and construction on airports.

Las Vegas faces another huge tourism slump as Americans avoid flying over fears that the government shutdown will cause chaos and delays at airports (File photo of a Spirit airlines plane at Harry Reid International Airport and the Las Vegas strip)

An influx in cancellations could be detrimental to the Vegas economy, which is heavily fueled by travel and tourism (Pictured: The main gambling area at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas in 2021)

Vegas aviation history expert Dan Bubb, an associate professor at UNLV, warned that travelers should expect longer security lines at Harry Reid International Airport during the shutdown.

He fears that TSA and air traffic control employees who are expected to work without pay are more likely to call out sick during this time period, resulting in further delays.

‘It’s already bad enough that you have critical workers who aren’t going to be paid and are basically doing their work for free, but the travelers are going to be delayed,’ he told The Las Vegas Sun.

‘In an environment where people already don’t have a whole lot of patience, this is really going to require their patience.’

Democratic congresswoman Dina Titus, who represents Nevada, echoed the aviation expert’s concern, alleging that potential problems with air travel will leave people ‘not wanting to travel so much’.

The US Travel Association, a non-profit that represents all components of the industry, warned that a government shutdown could cost $1 billion a week and create ‘unnecessary strain on an already overextended federal travel workforce’.

‘The consequences of inaction are immediate and severe. A shutdown exacerbates staffing shortages among Transportation Security Administration officers and air traffic controllers, threatening longer airport security lines, flight delays, and cancellations,’ the group said in a letter to Congressional leaders.

The last government shutdown, which occurred during Donald Trump’s first term, was the longest in US history and last five weeks.

While experts warn the shutdown could leave a devastating impact on Las Vegas, Nevada Resort Association President Virginia Valentine has tried downplaying concern.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (C), a Republican from Louisiana, leads a news conference with Republican Congressional leadership outside the US Capitol on the first day of the US government shutdown on October 1, 2025

The US Travel Association warned a government shutdown could cost $1 billion a week and create ‘unnecessary strain on an already overextended federal travel workforce’ (Pictured: Travelers walk through a terminal at Harry Reid International Airport in August 2025)

Valentine, in a statement to the Sun, claimed the state’s gaming and resort industry is ‘highly adaptive, resilient and well-positioned to meet possible challenges ahead’.

But Sin City has repeatedly struggled throughout 2025 amid skyrocketing prices, falling rates of hotel stays and a lack of tourists to the Nevada party hub.

The city has recently dwindled in popularity, with many regarding it as overpriced.

Sky-high prices in Sin City, including poolside beers being sold at a 15 times markup, have been blamed for driving away customers.

Canadian tourists – whose custom has long been important to Sin City’s economy – are also boycotting it over Trump’s threats to turn their country into the 51st state.

Frustration with Vegas prices also comes amid a decline in air travel to the city.

August recorded 4.56 million air passengers – an almost 6 percent drop compared to the same month last year, figures from Harry Reid International Airport shows.

The data follows a trend throughout the summer, with total passengers down 4.5 percent this year from 2024 numbers.

The report cemented a steep decline in tourism to Las Vegas, with previous statistics from April showing it was losing upwards of 300,000 visitors per month since the start of 2025.

The decline in tourism also comes amid fears that flying could be getting more dangerous.

The US experienced its deadliest plane crash in decades earlier this year when an American Airlines jet collided with an Army helicopter

An Air India aircraft struck a medical college hostel in a residential part of Ahmedabad in June this year, killing 241 of the 242 people on board

Just last week, a window opened unexpectedly in the cockpit of Vegas-bound Delta Flight 2261 while it was on the runway at Minneapolis Airport on Wednesday.

The incident came just days after two separate Delta planes caught fire on their way out of the Atlanta airport.

Close calls like this only add to the worries about aviation safety these days in the wake of the deadliest plane crash in the US in decades when an American Airlines jet collided with an Army helicopter.

Then in June an Air India plane crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all but one of the 242 people aboard and 29 others on the ground.

In the first half of 2025 alone, there were at least 460 deaths due to aircraft crashes.

The average for most years is just 284, putting 2025 at nearly double the yearly average in just six months.

However, experts still claim that air travel is actually safer than ever before and significantly safer than driving or most other forms of transport.