Major airlines say they plan to cancel hundreds of flights Friday, out of thousands of daily flights, as the Federal Aviation Administration begins limiting flight capacity at 40 major U.S. airports amid the government shutdown.
American Airlines said Thursday that it will cancel about 220 of its roughly 6,000 departures starting Friday and continuing through this weekend.
United Airlines said in a statement that it plans to cancel fewer than 200 of its more than 5,000 flights each day over the weekend. The airline has listed flight cancellations. on a special website along with other information for travelers.
A company spokesperson told ABC News that about half of customers who had their flights canceled were able to rebook them within 4 hours of their original departure time.
People wait in the concourse of Terminal A at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on November 6, 2025 in Houston, Texas. Federal Aviation Administrator Bryan Bedford has announced that the FAA will reduce flights by 10 percent at 40 major airports across the country in an effort to keep airspace safe amid staffing shortages due to the government shutdown.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Delta Airlines said it planned to cancel about 170 flights daily.
American, United and Delta, the three largest U.S. airlines, have said they believe they will be able to accommodate most of the affected passengers on other flights.
The cancellations are the latest, and perhaps largest, disruption to air travel since the government shutdown began more than a month ago.
What travelers say
Travelers began being notified of canceled flights on Thursday.
Caitlin Ladner, of Wisconsin, said she had planned to fly to Raleigh, North Carolina, on Friday for a trip to surprise her parents with her sister, but received a notice about her canceled flight on the United app.
“We’ve been planning this for a while… It’s pretty disturbing.” he told ABC News.
Despite an offer to reschedule his flight, he said he decided to cancel it entirely.
“I don’t know when all this is going to end,” he said.
Meanwhile, other travelers across the country on Thursday were bracing for delays and trying to get home before cancellations began.
At Reagan National Airport outside Washington, D.C., Frederick Ross of Fort Myers, Florida, told ABC News that the current travel headaches are making him rethink his upcoming travel plans for the upcoming vacation.
“It’s a big factor having to deal with delays and cancellations, and speaking of traveling with the whole family, it’s easier to just take a road trip,” he said.
ABC News’ Ayesha Ali, Sam Sweeney and Rachel Scott contributed to this report.
