Travel across the United States descended into turmoil on Sunday as airlines cancelled more than 3,300 flights, with officials warning that the government shutdown could soon bring air travel close to collapse. The mass disruption unfolded even as US senators struck a stopgap deal aimed at reopening the government after a six-week funding deadlock.
The Federal Aviation Administration&rsquo;s decision last week to scale back air traffic operations, following reports of exhausted air traffic controllers calling in sick, triggered widespread delays. More than&nbsp;10,000 flights were delayed nationwide on Sunday alone, compounding cancellations that began piling up on Friday.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy painted a bleak picture if the shutdown drags on. &ldquo;As we get closer to Thanksgiving travel, air travel will slow to a trickle,&rdquo; he warned. In a separate comment, he added, &ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t get better. It gets worse until these air traffic controllers are going to be paid.&rdquo;
Under the FAA&rsquo;s phased reductions, airlines were ordered to cut domestic flights by 4% starting Friday morning. That threshold rises to 6% on Monday, 8% by Thursday, and 10% by the end of the week, just as Americans prepare for one of the busiest travel periods of the year. Nearly&nbsp;80 million people travelled during Thanksgiving in 2024, with airports screening a record 3.09 million passengers the Sunday after the holiday.
Hopes for relief emerged late Sunday when senators announced a provisional funding agreement to keep government agencies running through January. The bill cleared a key procedural vote, but must still pass both chambers of Congress before President Donald Trump signs it into law.
Whether normalcy would return immediately remains uncertain. The FAA has said flight restrictions will only be lifted based on &ldquo;safety data.&rdquo; Some aviation experts believe controllers will quickly return to work once pay resumes; others suspect that the flight cuts themselves may be politically motivated.
Aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia cautioned that the rationale behind the reductions remains opaque. &ldquo;The decision to restrict capacity was understandable if the facts and data support it,&rdquo; he said. But without transparency, he added, &ldquo;People are right to be suspicious.&rdquo;
As the shutdown inches toward a possible resolution, millions of American travelers are left wondering whether the skies will clear or remain clogged when the holiday rush begins.

US Flights Slashed as Shutdown Deepens Crisis

Over 3,300 flights cancelled as unpaid controllers trigger fears of Thanksgiving chaos

US Flights Slashed as Shutdown Deepens Crisis

Over 3,300 flights cancelled as unpaid controllers trigger fears of Thanksgiving chaos

November 10, 2025 | 17:17 IST