Did U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy say in a Fox News interview in November 2025 that "Pilots need to stop depending on air traffic controllers. They need to suck it up and go with their gut feelings"? No, that's not true: There is no video, documentation, or reporting to support the claim Duffy said this, but such a controversial statement would have drawn widespread attention. A Google search for the quote found only social media posts making the claim and using an image from an unrelated Fox Business News appearance in August 2025.
The claim appeared in posts on several social platforms, including this post (archived here) shared on Threads on November 8, 2025. The caption read:
BREAKING FOX NEWS: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy goes on the record: "Pilots need to stop depending on air traffic controllers. They need to suck it up and go with their gut feelings."
This is what the post, which used the same image and text as many others, looked like at the time of writing:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of X.com)
The claim emerged as the FAA ordered airlines to cut back on flights because of an air traffic control and TSA staffing shortage as the federal government shutdown entered a sixth week.
None of the posts making the claim included a video of Secretary Duffy making the statement. Instead, each post used a screenshot of Duffy's August 14, 2025 Fox Business News interview (archived here). Duffy never addressed the staffing shortage or the shutdown -- which would not begin until weeks later. As the caption under the video reads, he was talking about his belief that the U.S. needs to establish a moon base ahead of a space war. In this screenshot below, which shows almost the same moment as the screenshot in the posts, he is wearing the same suit and tie. The screen graphics also reflect the same stock market numbers and time stamp.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of foxbusiness.com)
A Google search (archived here) conducted at the time of writing found no actual reporting that Duffy made the controversial statement.
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of Google search results)
