Greater than 700 flights nationwide have been canceled Saturday because the Federal Aviation Administration continues limiting flight capability at 40 main U.S. airports amid the federal government shutdown.
As of 6 a.m. ET on Saturday, 754 flights have already been canceled nationwide and the overall may eclipse Friday’s toll of 1,024 cancellations.
Nevertheless, regardless of greater than 1,000 flights being canceled on Friday, main delays at airports throughout the nation proceed to persist on account of staffing points in air visitors controller towers and facilities.
If the federal government shutdown continues, extra air journey reductions could possibly be on the way in which, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated in an interview on ABC Information Stay on Friday.
“My hope is that this authorities shutdown will finish quickly and we will get again within the enterprise of letting Individuals journey,” Duffy stated within the interview.
It’s doable the Division of Transportation might ask airways to cancel greater than 10% of their flights if controllers preserve calling out in greater numbers, Duffy informed ABC Information.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 07: An Air France airplane takes off over a United Airways airplane at San Francisco Worldwide Airport (SFO) on November 07, 2025 in San Francisco, California. The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is lowering flights by 10 p.c at 40 main airports nationwide, together with SFO, starting Friday amid air visitors management staffing shortages ensuing from the federal authorities shutdown.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Photographs
Duffy stated the FAA has requested personal jets to keep away from flying on the 40 airports impacted by the flight reductions, although they’re at the moment not prohibited from flying there. He stated personal jet corporations have been cooperative and are selecting alternate airports to assist alleviate the strain at these airports.
The cancellations are the most recent — and maybe largest — disruption to air journey for the reason that authorities shutdown started greater than a month in the past.
The FAA determined to not lower any worldwide flights as it could be a violation of worldwide agreements with the nations, based on Duffy.
“We have now worldwide agreements that we abide by, and due to these worldwide agreements, I am not going to impression these worldwide flights. And since if I do, what is going to occur is we’ve different nations which are ready to have a breach of these contracts from the US to allow them to lower down American flights, after which that will have a really lengthy lasting impression on our means to to to ship vacationers from the U.S. to these companions which have the agreements,” Duffy stated.
