Airline Disruptions Show No Signs of Abating Despite Government Shutdown End
With the US government shutdown officially over after President Donald Trump signed a bill into law on Wednesday, air travel disruptions continue to affect millions of passengers. According to FlightAware, 1,017 flights were canceled and 2,478 more delayed as of Thursday afternoon, leaving many travelers scrambling for alternative arrangements.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has frozen flight reductions that were initially set to increase on Thursday, citing a steady decrease in cancellations over the past week. The agency's emergency order will maintain the current level of 6% flight reductions, effective immediately.
Chris Sununu, president and CEO of Airlines for America, warned that air travel may not return to normal operations for up to a week. "I don't think any flights over the Thanksgiving week have actually been canceled yet," he said in a press briefing. "We're still a good week-plus away from that Thanksgiving week. There's still plenty of time to make sure that everything over the Thanksgiving week goes off as originally planned."
The airports with the most cancellations on Thursday included Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and Denver International Airport.
Despite these disruptions, Sununu downplayed the impact on the holiday season. "I don't think any of this will last into the Thanksgiving week," he said. However, travelers are advised to check with their airlines for updates on flight schedules and cancellations.
The FAA has assured that it is working closely with airlines to assess the situation and determine when it can safely resume normal operations. In the meantime, air travel disruptions continue to affect millions of passengers nationwide.
With the US government shutdown officially over after President Donald Trump signed a bill into law on Wednesday, air travel disruptions continue to affect millions of passengers. According to FlightAware, 1,017 flights were canceled and 2,478 more delayed as of Thursday afternoon, leaving many travelers scrambling for alternative arrangements.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has frozen flight reductions that were initially set to increase on Thursday, citing a steady decrease in cancellations over the past week. The agency's emergency order will maintain the current level of 6% flight reductions, effective immediately.
Chris Sununu, president and CEO of Airlines for America, warned that air travel may not return to normal operations for up to a week. "I don't think any flights over the Thanksgiving week have actually been canceled yet," he said in a press briefing. "We're still a good week-plus away from that Thanksgiving week. There's still plenty of time to make sure that everything over the Thanksgiving week goes off as originally planned."
The airports with the most cancellations on Thursday included Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and Denver International Airport.
Despite these disruptions, Sununu downplayed the impact on the holiday season. "I don't think any of this will last into the Thanksgiving week," he said. However, travelers are advised to check with their airlines for updates on flight schedules and cancellations.
The FAA has assured that it is working closely with airlines to assess the situation and determine when it can safely resume normal operations. In the meantime, air travel disruptions continue to affect millions of passengers nationwide.
!! i got a flight delayed on thursday and now im stuck waiting till monday 
!! anyone know how long this thing is gonna take to get back to normal? 
here's a lil diagram to show u how my sanity is going 
. but honestly, its like they need to have a plan in place before they shut down, u feel? 
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... think gov shutdown was a bit late to save the day 
. Wonder if they were prepared for this mess or just winging it 
. Not looking forward to those Thanksgiving flights 
airlines r like "hey, wanna fly 2 chicago? we dont care if its snowy rn" 
anyway, the faa seems to be on top of it, and sununu seems pretty chill about the whole thing. lets just keep our fingers crossed that air travel gets back to normal soon! 
the faa is doing their best to get things back on track but it seems like every time they think they're making progress, another disruption hits 
i just hope everyone stays safe & calm during this crazy time 
FlightAware says over 3,000 flights were canceled or delayed as of yesterday - that's a lot! I'm worried about all those travelers scrambling to find new flights or deals... my niece is heading out to LA for Christmas and I hope she won't get stuck in the airport for hours 
.
and what about the airports? chicago ohare is crazy 
anyway, sounds like it's gonna be a long road to recovery 
️. Can't wait till I can just chill at the airport without worrying about my flight getting cancelled 
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still got my fingers crossed it'll be back to normal in no time... or at least until next week when all the turkeys fly out 