FAA to cut flights by 10% at 40 major airports due to government shutdown

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday afternoon that he will be reducing flight capacity by 10% at 40 major airports starting on Friday morning.

It was not immediately clear which airports would be affected.

“This is proactive,” Duffy said in a news conference.

Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Bryan Bedford said additional measures could be taken after the initial reduction.

“As we slice the data more granularly, we are seeing pressures build in a way that we don’t feel if we allow it to go unchecked will allow us to continue to tell the public that we operate the safest airline system in the world,” Bedford said on Wednesday.

Bedford added that the administration will be meeting with the airline community to decide how to move forward on implementing the reduction.

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