FAA Ends Flight Cuts After Gov't Shutdown As Thanksgiving Travel Approaches

By Chris Spiker From Daily Voice

The Federal Aviation Administration has ended its widespread flight restrictions put in place during the record-long federal government shutdown.

The FAA officially lifted its emergency flight reduction order at 6 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 17. The order was set to require airlines to cut 10% of their schedules at 40 major airports on Friday, Nov. 14, but it was paused at 6% reductions when the shutdown ended on Wednesday, Nov. 12.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said normal operations have resumed across the National Airspace System (NAS) after air traffic controllers worked without pay for more than five weeks.

"I want to thank the FAA's dedicated safety team for keeping our skies secure during the longest government shutdown in our nation's history and the country’s patience for putting safety first," said Duffy.

The FAA issued the emergency order earlier in November as staffing shortages triggered repeated slowdowns at major airports, especially across the Northeast. More than 5 million travelers have been affected by flight reductions and delays since the shutdown began on Wednesday, Oct. 1, according to the trade group Airlines for America.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said the agency's review showed steady improvement heading into the weekend.

"Today's decision to rescind the order reflects the steady decline in staffing concerns across the NAS and allows us to return to normal operations," said Bedford. "I am grateful for the hard work of the FAA safety and operations teams and for their focus on the safety of the traveling public."

Staffing triggers peaked at 81 on Saturday, Nov. 8, before dropping sharply and resembling pre-shutdown levels. FAA data showed six triggers on November 14, eight on Saturday, Nov. 15, and just one on Sunday, Nov. 16.

While the FAA reductions have been removed, airlines have warned that some delays and other issues may linger.

"We are grateful to the dedicated air traffic controllers and TSA officers who showed up for work despite not getting paid," Airlines for America said. "Additionally, thousands of airline employees have been going the extra mile to take care of customers during these challenging days. When the FAA gives airlines clearance to return to full capacity, our crews will work quickly to ramp up operations, especially with Thanksgiving holiday travel beginning next week."

Several other restrictions will also end.

Limits on general aviation operations at 12 airports will be removed. Commercial space launches and reentries will no longer be restricted to only overnight hours, while parachute operations and photo missions near affected facilities can resume normal scheduling.

Duffy said the FAA will continue looking for solutions to the air traffic control staffing shortage that has existed since well before the government shutdown.

"Now we can refocus our efforts on surging controller hiring and building the brand new, state-of-the-art air traffic control system the American people deserve," he said.

The FAA also said it's reviewing reports of airlines that didn't follow the order and "assessing enforcement options."