Overview
- Starting Friday, airlines will trim about 4% of flights at targeted airports, building to 10% as the FAA phases in reductions focused on roughly 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. operations.
- A list of 40 affected airports was circulated to carriers and obtained by news outlets, covering major hubs in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Miami, Houston and more.
- FlightAware reported nearly 700 Friday flights already removed from schedules, while American cut about 220 flights per day through Monday, United planned a 4% reduction this weekend, and Delta canceled roughly 170 flights Friday.
- Carriers say long‑haul international and hub‑to‑hub routes will largely be protected, with most cuts concentrated on regional and smaller domestic markets and with broad change and refund waivers in place.
- The shutdown has left about 13,000 air‑traffic controllers and 50,000 TSA staff working without pay, and officials warn cargo flows could be affected at hubs like Memphis and Louisville even as they stress the cuts can be reversed if funding is restored.