FAA Withdraws Decision to Cut Flights at 40 Airports as U.S. Government Shutdown Nears End

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that it is withdrawing its earlier decision to reduce flight operations at 40 airports, as air travel is set to return to normal. In a statement, the FAA confirmed that all restrictions imposed during the government shutdown are now being lifted.

Earlier, due to the 43-day-long government shutdown, authorities ordered up to a 10% reduction in flight operations at 40 airports across the country. The shutdown severely disrupted air travel—affecting an average of 4,000 flights per day, delaying more than 10,000 flights, and causing nearly 3,000 cancellations. The primary reason was the reduced availability of air traffic controllers, who were not receiving regular pay, resulting in staff shortages.

On Sunday, many of these flights were cancelled, but shortly afterward lawmakers from both the Republican and Democratic parties reached a temporary agreement to end the ongoing deadlock. The shutdown—triggered by disputes over the federal funding bill—had paralyzed government operations for 40 days.

The FAA had earlier imposed partial restrictions on air traffic management following a work slowdown by air traffic controllers. Nearly 13,000 controllers—classified as “essential workers”—had been working without pay since October 1.

The U.S. Senate has now voted to advance a stopgap funding package aimed at ending the shutdown. The vote marks a major step toward concluding what has become the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.

In Sunday’s vote, eight Democrats broke ranks and supported the Republican-backed funding bill. Under the temporary legislation, the government will remain open until January 30 next year. The bill also provides one-year funding for certain sectors, including food assistance programs and the legislative branch.

One key Democratic demand—continuing subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)—was not guaranteed in the deal. Instead, the agreement between Republicans and centrist Democrats states that the issue will be addressed in a separate vote in December.

According to Al Jazeera, the measure passed by a 60–40 margin. It was a cloture vote, meaning the Senate agreed to move forward with discussions and begin the formal process of passing the necessary bills to end the shutdown.

Securing 60% support allows all subsequent votes to pass with a simple majority, making final approval of the bill in the Senate significantly easier.