More than 700 flights nationwide were canceled Saturday as the Federal Aviation Administration continues to limit flight capacity at 40 major U.S. airports amid the government shutdown.
As of 6 a.m. ET on Saturday, 754 flights have already been canceled nationwide and the total could eclipse Friday’s cancellation number of 1,024.
However, despite more than 1,000 flights being canceled on Friday, significant delays continue to persist at airports across the country due to staffing issues at air traffic controller towers and centres.
If the government shutdown continues, further reductions in air travel could be on the way, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Friday in an interview on ABC News Live.
“My hope is that this government shutdown ends soon and we can once again allow Americans to travel,” Duffy said in the interview.
The Transportation Department may ask airlines to cancel more than 10% of their flights if controllers continue to call in greater numbers, Duffy told ABC News.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 7: An Air France aircraft takes off over a United Airlines aircraft at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on November 7, 2025 in San Francisco, California. The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is reducing flights by 10 percent at 40 major airports across the country, including SFO, starting Friday amid air traffic control staff shortages as a result of the federal government shutdown.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Duffy said the FAA has asked private jets to avoid flying into the 40 airports affected by the flight reductions, although they are not currently prohibited from flying there. He said private jet companies have cooperated and are choosing alternative airports to help relieve pressure on those airports.
The cancellations are the latest, and perhaps largest, disruption to air travel since the government shutdown began more than a month ago.
The FAA decided not to cut any international flights because it would be a violation of international agreements with countries, according to Duffy.
“We have international agreements that we honor, and because of those international agreements, I’m not going to affect those international flights. And because if I do, what will happen is we will have other countries that are waiting for the United States to breach those contracts so they can reduce American flights, and that would have a very lasting impact on our ability to send travelers from the United States to those partners that have the agreements,” Duffy said.
