After weeks of delays and cancellations, the Federal Aviation Administration announced that it will remove its shutdown-related flight restrictions, enabling airports in the United States to reopen as usual. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Sunday that the 6% traffic reduction that was put in place last week will end at 6 a.m. ET on Monday. They claimed that after examining safety trends and noting rising staffing levels, the FAA came to its decision.
“Now we can refocus our efforts on surging controller hiring and building the brand new, state of the art air-traffic control system the American people deserve,” Duffy said.
FAA to lift flight restrictions
As flight crews resume their regular schedules, airlines warned that it might take a few days to resume full operations. In addition to a busy shipping season, the industry is bracing for a record 31 million passengers during the Thanksgiving travel period, according to Airlines for America, the trade association that represents major carriers.
After the shutdown exacerbated staffing shortages among federal transportation workers who were working without pay, Duffy ordered a 10% reduction in air traffic at 40 major U.S. airports on Nov. 6. The FAA also increased restrictions on commercial space launches and parachute operations, and prohibited business jets and some other private flights from major airports. Duffy said the shutdown required traffic restrictions to keep the skies safe. He noted that weeks without pay pushed some Transportation Security Administration officers and air-traffic controllers to take side jobs or call out from work.
The following week, the FAA tightened restrictions after first reducing traffic by 4%. By Nov. 9, airlines had canceled over 2,600 flights, or roughly 10% of all U.S. air traffic that day, as delays and cancellations had increased. On November 11, the agency increased the cut to 6%. The FAA froze further restrictions after lawmakers agreed to end the shutdown a day later.
Within two days of the shutdown ending, controllers will receive 70% of their lost revenue, with the remaining balance due in about a week, according to Duffy. Trump administration officials have also promised bonuses to federal transportation workers who remained on the job during the shutdown. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said last week that TSA officers who provided “exemplary service” during the shutdown would receive $10,000 bonuses.
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