The Federal Aviation Administration announced they would suspend collecting taxes on air ticket purchases as the agency grapples with funding and budgetary issues. The FAA’s funding expired at the end the day Friday and Congress has not yet approved new funding, forcing the agency to partially shut down operations.
While this won’t affect essential services, such as the staffing of air traffic control towers, the FAA stands to lose $200 million a week in air ticket tax revenue, according to CBS News. The loss works out to $61 per ticket on average.
So the government’s loss is your gain! If you’ve been waiting to buy your air ticket, do so as soon as possible, as Congress could come to an agreement on the agency’s funding at any moment and collect taxes once again. Think of it as the fire sale to end all fire sales. Add to that the airline’s current fare sales and the upcoming autumn low-season for ticket prices, and you have yourself a spectacular travel opportunity!