US lifts flight restrictions as air traffic stabilizes

The US Federal Aviation Administration announced Sunday it will terminate all commercial flight restrictions that have limited operations at 40 major airports during the extended government shutdown. The emergency order mandating nationwide flight reductions will be lifted effective 6 am Monday, permitting the National Airspace System to resume standard operations following weeks of disruption.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said the decision follows recommendations from the agency’s safety team, which noted a consistent decline in staffing-related incidents at air traffic control facilities. Duffy acknowledged the FAA’s “dedicated safety team” for maintaining security during the prolonged shutdown, confirming that with controllers returning to work, “normal operations can resume.” He outlined future priorities including enhanced controller recruitment and developing a “state-of-the-art air traffic control system.”

The FAA initially implemented the traffic reduction order on November 7 as staffing shortages intensified during the budget impasse, creating unprecedented constraints on national air traffic. Major aviation hubs including those in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Atlanta were significantly affected. Flight cancellations reached their peak on November 9 when airlines grounded over 2,900 flights due to the FAA mandate, controller shortages, and adverse weather conditions.

Conditions began improving last week as congressional leaders moved toward resolving the shutdown, enabling the FAA to cancel plans for additional flight reductions. Agency data shows controller staffing has substantially recovered since the shutdown ended, with staffing-trigger events dropping from 81 on November 8 to just one by November 16, returning to pre-shutdown levels. With the order’s termination, limitations on general aviation flights, visual flight rule approaches, commercial space operations, and specialized missions will also be lifted.