Hundreds of Flights Canceled Across Busiest U.S. Airports as FAA Reductions Take Effect. Here’s What to Know

Air travelers are feeling the impact of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history as they’re forced to deal with flight cancellations and delays due to a shortage of on-duty air traffic controllers.

And flight travel is set to get a whole lot more inconvenient as Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has ordered a 10% cut in flights at 40 major U.S. airports, citing air traffic control safety concerns.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) sanctioned cuts started to come into effect on Friday morning. The FAA has also warned that it could enforce additional flight restrictions moving forward, if further air traffic issues come to light.

“My department has many responsibilities, but our number one job is safety. This isn’t about politics—it’s about assessing the data and alleviating building risk in the system as controllers continue to work without pay,” said Secretary Duffy in an email to TIME on Thursday evening. “It’s safe to fly today, and it will continue to be safe to fly next week because of the proactive actions we are taking.”

The Department of Transportation confirmed to TIME that the restrictions would consist of a 4% reduction in operations starting Friday, rising to 6% by Nov. 11, 8% by Nov. 13, and 10% by Nov. 14.

“Airlines will be required to issue full refunds. They will not be required to cover secondary costs. This is the normal procedure when a delay or cancellation is not at the fault of the carrier,” the department said.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said at a press conference on Wednesday that this was "new territory" on account of the government shutdown, which has stretched into its second month.

“I’m not aware in my 35-year history in the aviation market where we’ve had a situation where we’re taking these kinds of measures," he remarked.

The FAA is around 3,500 air traffic controllers short of its typical staffing levels and many have been working grueling schedules filled with overtime shifts and six-day weeks. 

Duffy had previously raised air travel safety concerns in early October.

“I want them [air traffic controllers] to think about the departures and arrivals of airplanes. I want to make sure they keep Americans, and airplanes, safe,” said Duffy during a press conference at Newark Liberty International airport in New Jersey. “But they’re not just thinking about the airspace, they’re thinking about: ‘Am I going to get a paycheck?’ ‘How am I going to pay my mortgage?’ ‘How do I make my car payment?’ ‘Do I have to take a second job and drive Uber?’

On Oct. 30, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA issued an urgent plea for the government shutdown to end, referring to it as an “unsustainable crisis.”

“Air traffic controllers, TSA officers, and other workers required to work without pay missed their first full paycheck this week,” they said, highlighting additional concerns that “more than 40 million people, including flight attendants, will [soon] lose SNAP food assistance.”

As air travel safety concerns mount, and the disruption to passengers is set to increase, here’s what to know:

Why are there so many flight delays and cancellations?

There were over 7,000 delays and over 200 cancellations at airports across the U.S. on Thursday alone, up from almost 3,900 delays and over 170 cancellations on Wednesday.

Due to some staff not coming into work without pay, Duffy said that those who are turning up to work face immense pressures.

“They're working longer hours, they're working more days, and that's some of the pressure that we're seeing on them, and we want to alleviate that pressure before it becomes an issue,” he said, explaining his reasoning behind flight cuts.

Citing performance data, the FAA echoed Duffy’s concerns, with Bedford telling press: “We are starting to see some evidence that fatigue is building in the system… we need to work towards relieving some of that pressure.”

Which airports are set to be affected by the flight cuts?

The 40 impacted airports span more than two dozen states and include high-demand locations locations like Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Orlando, Miami, and San Francisco.

In certain cities—such as New York, Houston, and Chicago—multiple airports stand to be affected.

The list of affected airports, which is subject to change, can be seen below:

According to the FAA, the 40 busiest airports in the U.S. in 2024 saw millions of passengers passing through.

Those airports included Hartsfield-Jackson International in Atlanta with 52.5 million enplanements, Dallas-Fort Worth International with 42.3 million, and Denver International with 40 million. Chicago’s O’Hare featured more than 38.5 million enplanements, Los Angeles International over 37.7 million, and JFK International, New York’s largest airport, had 31.4 million.

How long are the flight reductions set to last?

When asked how long the new reductions to flights will last, Duffy said that it would depend on the data that the FAA and Department for Transport are actively examining.

Both Duffy and Bedford have warned that further cuts and restrictions may follow.

Meanwhile, airlines are making efforts to support their passengers during this time.

United Airlines is planning to provide customers with “rolling updates” regarding the incremental changes, in an effort to give them "several days' advance notice and to minimize disruption for them," the company's CEO Scott Kirby told TIME in an emailed statement on Thursday morning.

The airline’s international long-haul flights and “hub-to-hub flying” are not set to be impacted by the FAA directive. Per United, its hub airports are Chicago O’Hare, Denver International, Guam’s Antonio B. Won Pat, Houston George Bush, Los Angeles International, Newark Liberty, San Francisco International, and Washington Dulles.

Delta Airlines told TIME that it “expects to operate the vast majority of [their] flights as scheduled, including all long-haul international services.” The company emphasized that safety remains the “top priority.”