Major U.S. airlines have reportedly canceled hundreds of flights scheduled for this weekend in succession due to the impact of the federal government shutdown. This follows the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) deciding to reduce allowable operations at major airports nationwide because of an air traffic controller shortage.
According to foreign media on the 6th (local time), United Airlines said it plans to cancel 4% of its total flights from that day through the weekend. As a result, an average of about 200 flights a day is estimated to be affected. American Airlines also announced that it will halt about 220 flights a day from the 7th to the 10th of this month, while Delta Air Lines said it would cut 170 flights as of the same day.
Alaska Airlines, the fifth-largest among U.S. carriers, also said it has begun suspending operations for "a limited number of flights," signaling that major airlines are taking action.
These steps are seen as following the FAA's announcement at a press conference on the 5th that it would reduce flights within the United States by 10%. U.S. Transportation Minister Sean Duffy said, "If the shutdown is not resolved by the 7th, we will forcibly reduce flights at 40 major airports in the United States," while FAA Administrator Brian Bedford added that "service reductions will be limited to 40 high volume traffic markets."
As the shutdown drags on, the air traffic controller shortage is reaching a serious level. The current shutdown has surpassed the record 35 days and is entering its second month. Minister Duffy said, "The air traffic controller workforce was already short by about 2,000," and explained, "Hundreds of thousands of federal employees have been on furlough since early October, and with some controllers taking side jobs to make ends meet, staffing is further decreasing."
Airlines are responding by scaling back flights for now, but they say the damage is not yet significant. American Airlines and others said, "Most flights are operating normally, and long-haul international routes are not affected." Aviation analyst Savanti Syth said, "It is currently the off-season for the airline industry, so there is significant capacity to rebook passengers," and assessed, "If the shutdown does not extend into the Thanksgiving travel peak, the impact on airline earnings will be limited."
European airlines are also watching the disruption. Air France-KLM offered an optimistic outlook, saying, "The FAA's adjustments are mostly limited to U.S. domestic routes, so the impact is limited." However, Germany's Lufthansa has voiced concern about a prolonged shutdown, saying, "The number of transfer passengers within the United States is already declining."
Andrew Lobbenberg of Barclays also warned, "If U.S. airlines reduce domestic operations, European carriers will inevitably be indirectly affected in the end."
Meanwhile, the list of 40 airports where the FAA decided to cut operations by 10% reportedly includes the three largest metropolitan areas — New York, Los Angeles (LA), and Chicago — as well as Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Orlando, Houston, and San Francisco. It is estimated that about 13,000 air traffic controllers across the United States are currently working without pay.