Houston’s Bush and Hobby airports are among the airports that will be affected by the FAA’s directive to reduce the number of flights, CBS News reports.

HOUSTON — The Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday that it will reduce air traffic by 10% across 40 “high-volume” markets beginning Friday morning to maintain safety during the ongoing government shutdown. CBS News reported Wednesday night that George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport were on the list of airports affected.

The agency is confronting staffing shortages caused by air traffic controllers, who are working unpaid, with some calling out of work during the shutdown, resulting in delays across the country.

RELATED: FAA reducing air traffic by 10% across 40 ‘high-volume’ markets

We have reached out to Houston Airports to learn more about how they might be affected. Airlines are working on plans to reduce the number of flights to or from certain destinations. (See messages from United and American below)

CBS News reports the list of airports has not been finalized, but includes busy airports like LAX, Chicago O’Hare, Reagan Washington National, Charlotte, and ATL. The FAA has not issued a formal order requiring airlines to cut capacity.

The Houston Airports system includes George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), and Ellington Airport (EFD), and is one of the largest public airport systems in North America.

“Houston Airports is aware of the comments made this afternoon by the U.S. Transportation Secretary,” according to a spokesperson in an emailed news release. “We remain in close communication with our airline and federal partners and stand ready to support their operations as needed.”

Bush Airport had 48.4 million passengers in 2024, ranking it as the 15th busiest airport in the United States. Hobby is the 36th busiest in the country.

The government shutdown means air traffic controllers and TSA agents have been working without being paid for more than a month. Some employees have stopped coming to work or taken other jobs to earn a living. The strain on resources has led to long lines at security at Bush Airport. Some travelers reported waiting more than four hours in line over the weekend.

There have also been ground stops and ground delays to maintain a safe workload for air traffic control staff.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said they will meet later Wednesday with airline leaders to figure out how to safely implement the reduction. 

Both Bedford and Duffy declined at a news conference Wednesday to name the affected markets until they speak with the airlines first. Bedford said a list would be released Thursday. CBS News obtained a draft of the list Wednesday night.

“If the pressures continue to build even after we take these measures,” he said, “We’ll come back and take additional measures.”

United Airlines has told its employees that international flights and hub-to-hub flights will not be affected. It wasn’t clear how other airlines would handle the cuts.

Major airlines, aviation unions and the wider travel industry have been urging Congress to end the shutdown.

Aviation analytics firm Cirium says flight data showed a “broader slowdown” last Thursday across the nation’s aviation system for the first time since the shutdown began, suggesting staffing-related disruptions were starting to become more widespread. That came days after controllers missed their first full paychecks.

Earlier this week, Duffy warned there could be chaos in the skies next week if the shutdown drags on long enough to keep air traffic controllers from getting their next paychecks on Tuesday.

Most controllers have continued to work mandatory overtime six days a week during the shutdown, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association has said. That leaves little time for a side job to help cover bills, mortgage payments and other expenses unless controllers call out.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.


Houston Airports anticipate wait times Thursday

Houston Airports did not address airline capacity cuts that were slated for Friday, but warned travelers about possible long lines on Thursday, after a weekend of travel headaches at Bush Airport in particular. On Thursday, Nov. 6, TSA wait times are expected to exceed 60 to 75 minutes at Bush Airport (IAH) and 30 to 45 minutes at Hobby Airport (HOU).

“We appreciate your patience and flexibility as we work closely with our federal partners to keep passengers moving safely and efficiently,” a Houston Airports spokesperson stated in a travel advisory issued for Thursday.

At Bush Airport, only TSA checkpoints at Terminals A and E are currently open for passenger screening. TSA PreCheck and CLEAR remain operational.

United Airlines passengers face special instructions: they should check luggage at Terminal C and then proceed to Terminal E for TSA screening, either by walking approximately six minutes or taking the Subway. United does not operate a ticketing counter at Terminal A, so passengers cannot check in there.

The Subway connects all five terminals at Bush Intercontinental and is accessible before security screening. After clearing TSA, passengers can use the Skyway to reach their departure gates.

For passengers checking in at Terminal D, they should proceed through the tunnel to Terminal E for TSA screening. Those not checking bags can use checkpoints at Terminals A or E.

At Hobby Airport, fewer TSA screening lanes are available. TSA PreCheck and CLEAR remain operational.

Houston Airports is urging passengers to remain flexible, as the government shutdown may impact security operations from one day—and even one shift—to the next.


United Airlines CEO sends message to employees

Scott Kirby addressed his employees in a message that was also distributed to the public Wednesday night:

Earlier today, the FAA and DOT directed every airline to reduce their schedules during the government shutdown, across 40 domestic airports.

The FAA’s goal is to relieve pressure on the aviation system so that we can all continue to operate safely. That is the FAA’s highest priority, and ours as well. No matter what environment we’re operating in, we will not compromise on safety.

These reductions will start on Friday, November 7, and we will continue to make rolling updates to our schedule as the government shutdown continues so we can give our customers several days’ advance notice and to minimize disruption for them and for all of you.

United’s long-haul international flying and our hub-to-hub flying will not be impacted by this schedule reduction direction from the FAA. That’s important to maintain the integrity of our network, give impacted customers as many options as possible to resume their trip, and sustain our crew pairing systems.

Instead, we will focus our schedule reductions on regional flying and domestic mainline flights that do not travel between our hubs.

We’ll use our app, website and push notifications to communicate to customers directly if their flight changes, and to offer rebooking options. We want to provide them with as much information as we can and in a way that’s simple and easy to understand.

And importantly, any customer traveling during this period is eligible for a refund if they do not wish to fly – even if their flight isn’t impacted. That includes non-refundable tickets and those customers with basic economy tickets.

Even with these schedule reductions, United and its United Express partners will still offer about 4,000 flights per day to fly our customers to their destinations. And because of the early November timing, our flights have more seats available than before the summer, meaning we should be able to find seats for many customers even if their flight is canceled.

Finally, thank you for going above and beyond during this government shutdown to take care of our customers and one another. Your professionalism and care will be more important than ever in the days ahead.

United Airlines, Houston’s largest airline, was not immediately able to share details of Houston flight changes.


American Airlines also shared a message about the “FAA directive”

The American Airlines website reads:

Due to the ongoing government shutdown and nationwide air traffic control staffing shortages, the FAA has directed airlines to reduce flight schedules to maintain safe airspace operations beginning Friday, Nov. 7. Flights on Thursday, Nov. 6, will operate as planned. While we are awaiting additional information from the FAA to determine which flights will be impacted, we expect the vast majority of our customers’ travel will be unaffected. As schedule changes are made, we will proactively reach out to customers who are impacted. As always, we encourage all customers to check their flight status on aa.com or the mobile app. In the meantime, we continue to urge leaders in Washington to reach an immediate resolution to end the shutdown.

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