Portland International Airport, all the largest West Coast airports and the busiest U.S. airline hubs will see flights cut starting Friday due to the government shutdown, according to a list distributed to the airlines and obtained by The Associated Press.
The Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday that it would reduce air traffic by 10% across 40 “high-volume” markets to maintain travel safety as air traffic controllers exhibit signs of strain during the shutdown.
The affected airports covering more than two dozen states include the busiest ones across the U.S. — including Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Orlando, Miami, and San Francisco. In some of the biggest cities — such as New York, Houston and Chicago — multiple airports will be affected.
The FAA is imposing the flight reductions to relieve pressure on air traffic controllers who are working without pay during the government shutdown and have been increasingly calling off work.
Controllers already have missed one full paycheck and are scheduled to again receive nothing next week as as the shutdown drags on.
The FAA has been delaying flights at times when airports or its other facilities are short on controllers.
Passengers should start to be notified about cancellations Thursday. Airlines said they would try to minimize the impact on customers, some of whom will see weekend travel plans disrupted with little notice.
Experts predict hundreds if not thousands of flights could be canceled. The cuts could represent as many as 1,800 flights and upwards of 268,000 seats combined, according to an estimate by aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Several said they would offer refunds to passengers who opt not to fly — even if they purchased tickets that aren’t normally refundable.
“I’m not aware in my 35-year history in the aviation market where we’ve had a situation where we’re taking these kinds of measures,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said Wednesday. “We’re in new territory in terms of government shutdowns.”
Air traffic controllers have been working unpaid since the shutdown began Oct. 1. Most work mandatory overtime six days a week, leaving little time for side jobs to help cover bills and other expenses unless they call out.
Mounting staffing pressures are forcing the agency to act, Bedford said.
“We can’t ignore it,” he said, adding that even if the shutdown ends before Friday, the FAA wouldn’t automatically resume normal operations until staffing improves and stabilizes.
Here are the airports included in the FAA order:
- Anchorage International in Alaska
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International in Georgia
- Boston Logan International in Massachusetts
- Baltimore/Washington International in Maryland
- Charlotte Douglas International in North Carolina
- Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International in Ohio
- Dallas Love Field in Texas
- Ronald Reagan Washington National in Virginia
- Denver International in Colorado
- Dallas/Fort Worth International in Texas
- Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County in Michigan
- Newark Liberty International in New Jersey
- Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International in Florida
- Honolulu International in Hawaii
- Houston Hobby in Texas
- Washington Dulles International in Virginia
- George Bush Houston Intercontinental in Texas
- Indianapolis International in Indiana
- John F. Kennedy International in New York
- Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas
- Los Angeles International in California
- LaGuardia Airport in New York
- Orlando International in Florida
- Chicago Midway International in Illinois
- Memphis International in Tennessee
- Miami International in Florida
- Minneapolis/St Paul International in Minnesota
- Oakland International in California
- Ontario International in California
- Chicago O`Hare International in Illinois
- Portland International in Oregon
- Philadelphia International in Pennsylvania
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International in Arizona
- San Diego International in California
- Louisville International in Kentucky
- Seattle/Tacoma International in Washington
- San Francisco International in California
- Salt Lake City International in Utah
- Teterboro in New Jersey
- Tampa International in Florida
Staffing can run short both in regional control centers that manage multiple airports and in individual airport towers, but they don’t always lead to flight disruptions. Throughout October, flight delays caused by staffing problems had been largely isolated and temporary.
But the past weekend brought some of the worst staffing issues since the start of the shutdown.
From Friday to Sunday evening, at least 39 air traffic control facilities reported potential staffing limits, according to an Associated Press analysis of operations plans shared through the Air Traffic Control System Command Center system. The figure, which is likely an undercount, is well above the average for weekends before the shutdown.
— The Associated Press
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