FAA flight cuts at 40 US airports: How much will it impact flyers? United Airlines, American Airlines, others react

The United States announced plans to cut flights by up to 10% at 40 major airports after the government shutdown touched a record 36th day on Wednesday. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the cuts could be reversed if Democrats agreed to reopen the government.

The move aims to ease pressure on air traffic controllers. Notably, the shutdown has forced 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents to work without pay since the shutdown began on 1 October, Reuters reported.

The drastic plan to significantly reduce flights in just 36 hours has left airlines scrambling to make changes. Passengers also flooded airline customer service hotlines with concerns about air travel in the coming days.

FAA's plan to cut flights

Reuters earlier cited industry sources as saying that in a call with major US carriers, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said that capacity reductions at airports would start at 4%, rising to 5% Saturday, 6% Sunday, before hitting 10% next week.

The FAA also plans to exempt international flights from the cuts.

The government has not yet named the 40 airports that will be affected due to the cuts. However, officials expect that the flight cuts will affect the 30 busiest airports, including those serving New York City, Washington, DC, Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Dallas.

This would reduce as many as 1,800 flights and over 268,000 airline seats, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium. Government officials said nothing would be final until the FAA published an order on Thursday.

The FAA also warned that it could add more flight restrictions after Friday if further air traffic issues emerge.

Will flights cut impact flyers? Here's how airlines have reacted

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said on Wednesday that the airline will not alter its long-haul international flights or hub-to-hub operations due to the FAA's planned flight reductions at major US airports.

Scott Kirby added that the cuts will target regional flying and non-hub domestic routes instead.

Kirby said the Chicago-based airline would still offer about 4,000 flights per day, adding its scheduled reductions will focus on regional flying and domestic mainline flights that do not travel between hubs.

He also emphasised a flexible refund policy, telling employees, “any customer travelling during this period is eligible for a refund if they do not wish to fly - even if their flight isn't impacted.”

American Airlines echoed a similar sentiment, indicating most of its customers would see minimal disruption. It said, "Flights on Thursday, Nov. 6, will operate as planned."

Southwest, the largest domestic carrier, said it is evaluating how the cuts will affect its schedule and it will communicate with customers as soon as possible. It urged lawmakers to immediately resolve the impasse over government funding.