As the U.S. government shutdown hits day 38 today, November 7, 2025, the Federal Aviation Administration just kicked off a tough new rule: airlines must slash flights at 40 busy airports to ease the load on exhausted air traffic controllers working without pay.
Hundreds of trips are already scrapped, leaving travelers from Seattle to Miami scrambling for options. It all ramped up at 6 a.m. Eastern this morning. The cuts start small—4% of flights today—but they'll climb fast: 6% by Tuesday, 8% Thursday, and a full 10% by next Friday if Congress doesn't budge.
FAA boss Bryan Bedford and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy laid it out yesterday in Washington, D.C., naming hubs like Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson, Chicago's O'Hare, Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver International, Los Angeles International, and Charlotte Douglas as ground zero. New York gets hit across three spots. Even smaller spots are feeling ripples, with 20 cancellations reported by noon.
Airlines jumped in quick. United axed over 300 flights for the weekend, Delta trimmed about 150, and Southwest pulled around 100 just for today. American's holding steadier so far, but everyone's rebooking folks where they can. Refunds are automatic if you skip the reschedule—no arguments there. But hotels or meals? Unfortunately, the burden falls on the government rather than the carriers.
Controllers are pulling overtime shifts, fatigue reports are spiking, and safety can't wait for a budget deal. One pilot union rep in Chicago called it a "silent risk in the skies." Bedford warned more curbs could come if things don't ease. I hope lawmakers resolve it soon so everyone can take off without the extra baggage.
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