Flight cancellations and delays worsen as government shutdown drags on
[November 10, 2025]
By KEN SWEET
NEW YORK (AP) — The pain Americans are facing at airports across the
country is expected to get worse this week if Congress is unable to
reach a deal to reopen the federal government.
U.S. airlines canceled more than 1,500 flights Saturday and more than
2,900 Sunday to comply with an FAA order to reduce traffic as some air
traffic controllers, who have gone unpaid for nearly a month, have
stopped showing up for work.
As of early Monday, airlines had already canceled nearly 1,600 flights
for Monday and nearly 1,000 for Tuesday.
The Senate took a first step toward ending the shutdown Sunday, but
final passage could still be several days away and experts have said it
will take time for flights to go back to normal even after the
government reopens.
Many airports are facing significant delays for flights that haven’t
been canceled as well, with airports in Newark, Orlando, Chicago and
Detroit all facing departure delays of more than an hour and increasing,
according to FlightAware.
This is the second pay period that air traffic controllers have not
received any pay for their work. The head of the air traffic controllers
union, Nick Daniels, will hold a press conference Monday morning to
address the impact the shutdown is having on them.
The delays and cancellations are likely to get worse as airlines are
increasingly unable to reposition planes, pilots and flight attendants
due to the air traffic controller shortage.
The FAA implemented a 4% mandatory reduction in flights this weekend to
manage staffing. That will increase to 6% on Tuesday and 10% reduction
by this upcoming weekend. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on
“Fox News Sunday” that additional flight cuts of up to 20% might be
needed.
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People wait for flights as an American Airlines plane taxis at
LaGuardia Airport (LGA), in the Queens borough of New York, Sunday,
Nov. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
“More controllers aren’t coming to work day by day, the further they
go without a paycheck,” Duffy said.
The government has been short of air traffic controllers for years,
and multiple presidential administrations have tried to persuade
retirement-age controllers to remain on the job. Duffy said the
shutdown has exacerbated the problem, leading some air traffic
controllers to speed up their retirements.
While 4% may sound modest, much of that reduction is happening at 40
of the nation’s busiest and most congested airports. The FAA says
the flight reduction is necessary to keep travelers safe as many of
the remaining controllers have been putting in long hours and
mandatory overtime while the government remains unfunded.
If not addressed soon, the situation could get even worse as the
U.S. heads into the busy holiday travel season. Duffy said that air
travel may “be reduced to a trickle” by the week of Thanksgiving.
___
Associated Press writers Stephen Groves and Kevin Freking
contributed to this report from Washington. Associated Press writer
Rio Yamat contributed from Las Vegas.
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