(UNITED STATES) The FAA moved to ease pressure on the nation’s busiest airports on Saturday, cutting required flight reductions from 6 percent to 3 percent at 40 major hubs after the record 43-day government shutdown strained air traffic control staffing. The change took effect at 6 a.m. on November 15, 2025, and applies to heavy-traffic airports including Atlanta, Boston, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago O’Hare. Airlines, passengers, and cargo operators are expected to see modest relief as schedules begin to stabilize.
Decision and Rationale
Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford announced the shift late Friday, saying the move follows internal safety and operations recommendations.
“The required flight reductions at 40 airports will be lowered from 6 percent to 3 percent, effective November 15 at 6 a.m.,” they said in a joint statement.
The FAA emphasized that the step is cautious and reversible if safety metrics slip during the next phase of recovery. Officials said the initial cuts, first ordered on November 7, responded directly to controller shortages that worsened during the shutdown.
Staffing pressures and causes
Controllers were required to work without pay during the shutdown, prompting a wave of departures. Secretary Duffy said that “by the end of the shutdown, 15 to 20 controllers were retiring daily and some younger controllers were leaving the profession,” compounding a long-running staffing shortfall. The FAA prioritized safe spacing, especially during peak banks at high-volume airports.
Unions and industry observers note that training pipelines slowed, overtime surged, and burnout rose—factors that make recovery slower at the busiest hubs where washout rates are higher and training timelines are long.
Impact on flight operations
The systemwide crunch was evident in cancellations and schedule trims:
– Nearly 3,000 flights (about 10 percent of scheduled operations) were canceled last Sunday at the height of strain.
– Between November 7 and November 14, more than 11,800 flights were canceled as airlines repositioned aircraft and waited for crew and controller staffing to recover.
– By Friday, November 14, cancellations fell to about 2 percent of schedules, with 160 to 273 cancellations projected for Saturday as more controllers returned.
Airlines say the FAA’s order will let them add back flights where crews and planes are available, though not every route will rebound immediately.
Airline response and outlook
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said on “CBS Mornings” that “a return to normalcy [will be] a lot faster than people think. And normal for us is an incredibly safe, incredibly reliable, great experience. Thanksgiving is going to be a great holiday period of travel.”
Carriers plan to prioritize routes that reconnect disrupted banks and restore missed connections. However, Airlines for America warned there will be residual effects for days because many planes were rerouted and are not where they were scheduled to be. That means aircraft and crews still need repositioning to rebuild normal patterns.
Remaining restrictions and operational limits
The FAA cautioned that some limits will remain even as overall flight reductions ease:
– Some general aviation flying is still restricted at 12 airports.
– Visual flight rule approaches will be limited at facilities that hit staffing triggers.
– To reduce workload on understaffed centers and towers, commercial space launches and reentries are permitted only between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. local time.
– Parachute operations and photo missions face limits near affected facilities to protect controller bandwidth.
These measures aim to manage controller workload while incremental capacity is restored.
Affected airports
The targeted airports include the country’s primary domestic and international gateways. Among them are:
– Atlanta (ATL)
– Boston (BOS)
– Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW)
– Denver (DEN)
– Los Angeles (LAX)
– New York — JFK, Newark (EWR), LaGuardia (LGA)
– Chicago O’Hare (ORD)
These hubs act as the backbone of the U.S. network, so even small percentage adjustments can ripple across hundreds of downstream flights.
Enforcement and compliance
Regulators signaled they will watch compliance closely. In an addendum signed by William McKenna in Washington, DC, dated November 14, 2025, the agency warned that it “may initiate enforcement action(s) against noncompliant carriers.”
This warning aims to deter aggressive schedule-building that could push controller workload back into the danger zone.
Industry operations teams said they welcome clear guardrails to keep performance gains on track.
Safety focus and metrics
Safety remains the FAA’s central benchmark. Secretary Duffy said “safety metrics must improve before the order is lifted entirely,” noting reports during the shutdown of “planes getting too close in the air, more runway incursions and pilot concerns about controllers’ responses.” Investigators are reviewing those events to identify training needs and traffic management techniques.
The FAA says any future step-down of constraints will depend on measurable progress across these indicators and staffing stability at key facilities.
Operational realities and cargo considerations
Even with better news, the network will not snap back instantly. Points to consider:
– Many planes were rerouted and need repositioning; crews must be rebuilt into rotations.
– Reduced caps should help smooth irregular operations, particularly for morning departures and late-evening arrivals that tend to bottleneck.
– Cargo operators said overnight spaceflight windows will reduce conflicts with airfreight peaks.
Pilot groups urged continued restraint until controller pipelines are refilled and reliance on overtime falls.
Monitoring and public guidance
The FAA will keep monitoring daily performance data and staffing rosters, aiming to fully lift restrictions when safe. The agency asked travelers to check with airlines for the latest schedules and said official updates will be posted on the Federal Aviation Administration website.
According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, the rollback underscores how quickly the aviation system can rebound when controller availability improves, but it also exposes the fragility created by a thin hiring pipeline.
Context and next steps
The prolonged government shutdown, which ended on November 12, 2025, brought the controller shortage into sharp focus. Veteran controllers accelerated retirements and some younger controllers left the field during the pay stoppage. Unions warn that staffing gaps at high-pressure facilities can take years to close.
For now, the new FAA order offers airlines room to recover while holding the line on safety. The FAA framed the decision as a balance between capacity and caution, emphasizing that the 3 percent cap will be reevaluated if incidents rise or staffing backslides. Industry executives said they will rebuild flights in measured steps, focusing first on restoring missed connections and reducing long delays for passengers disrupted by the shutdown.
Holiday travel and risks
With Thanksgiving approaching, airports from Los Angeles to New York are preparing for heavier crowds and renewed confidence in on-time departures. Airlines expect stronger on-time performance than last week as they rebuild rotations and crew schedules.
However, planners warned:
– Weather or unexpected staffing shortages could trigger fresh constraints.
– Patience will be required as the network settles after weeks of stress tied to the government shutdown.
This Article in a Nutshell
Facing controller shortages after a 43-day government shutdown, the FAA cut required flight reductions at 40 major airports from 6% to 3%, effective Nov. 15, 2025, at 6 a.m. Officials said the move follows safety and operations reviews and is reversible if metrics decline. The staffing crisis saw 15–20 controllers retiring daily during the shutdown, slowing training and causing nearly 11,800 cancellations Nov. 7–14. Airlines will add flights where crews and planes are available, but some restrictions and operational limits remain while monitoring continues.
