Millions of Americans could see their holiday travel plans disrupted as the longest government shutdown in U.S. history begins to impact air travel nationwide.
Starting Friday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will reduce flights by 4% across 40 major airports, with cuts expected to rise to 10% by next week if the shutdown continues, according to an emergency order issued Thursday.
The FAA said the move aims to manage strained operations as staffing shortages deepen across critical aviation sectors, including air traffic control and security screening.
“We’re going to ask the airlines to work with us collaboratively to reduce their schedules,” said FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford.
Several major airlines have already preemptively canceled hundreds of flights for Friday and the coming weekend, describing the cancellations as comparable to disruptions caused by a severe weather event — but spread across multiple regions rather than one area.
Industry officials warn the impact could worsen if the shutdown persists into Thanksgiving, one of the busiest travel periods of the year, potentially grounding tens of thousands of flights and causing widespread delays nationwide.
The shutdown, now in its fifth week, has already halted pay for thousands of federal workers and disrupted key transportation and safety operations, putting further pressure on the White House and Congress to reach a deal.
