The Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency order in November 2025 that required immediate reductions in national airspace operations. The directive responded to operational strain across airports and introduced temporary limitations to protect system safety and maintain efficiency while staffing problems remained unresolved during a federal shutdown.
Airlines are specifically directed to reduce scheduled flights across 40 high-volume markets. There is also a phased sequence that aims to reach a total flight reduction of 10 percent within 1 week. Initial reductions were smaller but have increased as the aviation authority sought to stabilize and maximize strained operations and minimize flight delays and disruptions.
The reductions of flights will specifically start at 4 percent and will further ramp up to 10 percent by November 14. The 40 airports selected by the FAA span more than two dozen states and include hubs such as Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, and Charlotte, North Carolina, among others. Multiple airports will be impacted in some metropolitan areas like New York.
FAA officials identified severe staffing shortages among air traffic controllers as the primary factor behind the emergency action. Many personnel had worked without pay during the protracted federal shutdown, which created workplace fatigue, reduced availability across multiple control facilities, and raised safety risks that required immediate operational intervention.
Airlines implemented early cutbacks that aligned with FAA guidance and reported reducing roughly 4 percent of scheduled flights at affected hubs through Monday. These adjustments produced about 220 daily cancellations while carriers continued operating nearly 6000 flights nationwide as they balanced passenger needs with emerging safety constraints.
Note that high-volume hubs such as New York JFK, Newark, and LaGuardia faced strain as limits reduced traffic volumes and increased risks of flight delays. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy emphasized that the agency would monitor performance and apply additional measures if required to maintain airspace safety.
The emergency order will remain active until conditions improve or federal appropriations return. FAA officials indicated that flight caps may ease once stability strengthens, but travelers should expect evolving schedules and cancellations as airlines coordinate with regulators to maintain safety and manage reduced capacity during the persistent government shutdown.