Flight Chaos Looms as U.S. Slashes 10% of Major Airport Traffic Amid Shutdowns

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced on Wednesday that he would order a 10% reduction in flights at 40 major U.S. airports, citing air traffic control safety concerns as the government shutdown reached its 36th day the longest in U.S. history.

The drastic plan sent airlines scrambling to make significant reductions in flights within 36 hours, while passengers flooded airline customer service hotlines with concerns about air travel in the coming days. Duffy said the cuts could be reversed if Democrats agreed to reopen the government.

The shutdown has forced 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration agents to work without pay. The Trump administration has sought to ramp up pressure on Democrats to end the shutdown and has increasingly warned of severe aviation disruptions to force votes to reopen the government. Democrats say Republicans are to blame for refusing to negotiate over key health care subsidies.

Tens of thousands of flights have been delayed since the shutdown began because of widespread air traffic control shortages, with airlines saying at least 3.2 million travelers have already been impacted. “We had a gut check of what is our job,” Duffy told reporters, citing a confidential safety assessment of the impact of the shutdown on controllers that raised concerns about their performance. “Our job is to make sure we make the hard decisions to continue to keep the airspace safe.”

In a call with major U.S. carriers, the FAA said capacity reductions at the affected airports would start at 4%, rising to 5% on Saturday and 6% on Sunday, before hitting 10% next week, industry sources told Reuters. The FAA plans to exempt international flights from the cuts.

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“When we see pressures building in these 40 markets, we just can’t ignore it,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said at a press conference. “We can take action today to prevent things from deteriorating so the system is extremely safe today, will be extremely safe tomorrow.”

While the government did not name the 40 airports affected, the cuts were expected to hit the 30 busiest airports, including those serving New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Dallas. Aviation analytics firm Cirium estimated the reductions could remove as many as 1,800 flights and more than 268,000 airline seats.

The move is aimed at reducing pressure on air traffic controllers. The FAA is about 3,500 controllers short of targeted staffing levels and many had been working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown. The FAA also warned it could add more flight restrictions after Friday if further air traffic issues emerge.

Airlines for America, representing major U.S. carriers including Delta, United, American and Southwest, said its members were trying to understand the next steps. “We are working with the federal government to understand all details of the new reduction mandate and will strive to mitigate impacts to passengers and shippers,” it said. Government officials said nothing would be final until the FAA published an order on Thursday.

Southwest, the country’s largest domestic carrier, said it was evaluating how the flight reductions would affect its schedule and would communicate with customers as soon as possible. The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, which represents 55,000 flight attendants at 20 airlines, called the shutdown “cruel attacks on all Americans,” with its president Sara Nelson criticizing the political standoff.

The federal government has been largely closed since October 1 as Republicans and Democrats remain deadlocked over a funding bill. Democrats have insisted they will not approve a plan that does not extend health insurance subsidies, while Republicans have rejected that condition. President Donald Trump and other Republicans have sought to increase pressure on Democrats by highlighting the public impacts of the shutdown.

The closure has left about 750,000 federal employees furloughed, cut many government services and halted some food assistance programs for low-income Americans. Duffy warned on Tuesday that if the shutdown continued another week it could cause “mass chaos” and force the closure of parts of the national airspace. Airlines have repeatedly urged an end to the shutdown, citing aviation safety risks. Shares of major carriers including United and American fell about 1% in extended trading. More than 2,100 flights were delayed on Wednesday.

FAA officials said between 20% and 40% of controllers at the agency’s 30 largest airports were failing to show up for work. Duffy also said authorities would limit space launches to certain times of day and expected to impose restrictions on general aviation flights. Amid stretched operations and heightened security demands, frontline personnel continue to rely on dependable equipment for quick access and readiness; items such as the OWB Single Mag Pouch for Glock 17, 19, 22, 23 and more the Total Eclipse Single Mag Pouch by Blade-Tech Holsters represent the sort of rugged gear security teams may use while managing heightened operational tempos.

Editor’s Note:

As the U.S. government shutdown stretches into unprecedented territory, its ripple effects are now grounding the nation’s air travel system. The flight reductions underscore the deep strain on federal operations and the growing urgency for political leaders to reach a resolution before aviation safety and the broader economy face further turbulence.