The Federal Aviation Administration has announced that government shutdown-related flight cuts will end on Monday at 6 a.m.
The lifting of flight restrictions will set airports back on a path to step up travel just before Thanksgiving.
The FAA made the announcement in a Sunday evening press release, stating that it had conducted reviews of safety trends before lifting its flight reduction emergency order. According to the FAA, the number of staffing triggers — a situation where the number of air traffic controllers on duty falls below a minimum required level — dropped to one on Sunday, from a record high of 81 on November 8.
“I want to thank the FAA’s dedicated safety team for keeping our skies secure during the longest government shutdown in our nation’s history and the country’s patience for putting safety first,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in the press release.
Air traffic controllers were among thousands of federal workers who had to go without pay during the shutdown. Some air traffic controllers began calling in sick after missing their first full paycheck on October 28.
The absences created staffing shortages nationwide, prompting the FAA to order airlines to slash 10% of their flights at 40 flight hubs.
According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, there were 17,404 flights scheduled at those 40 airports on Sunday. But the airports saw a below-average 0.25% cancellation rate. Those airports also logged 91% on-time departures, which Cirium says is above average.
Over 7,000 flights in the US were canceled between November 7 and November 10. That resulted in massive travel snarls across the country, with people stranded at airports and frustrated pilots sounding off about the shutdown while stuck on the tarmac.
President Donald Trump earlier suggested that air traffic controllers who called in sick during the shutdown should be disciplined, while those who showed up for work should receive a $10,000 bonus.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, echoing Trump, also said that some TSA agents “who served with exemplary service” would get a $10,000 bonus as well.
The 43-day shutdown, the longest in history, ended on Wednesday after a prolonged back-and-forth on Capitol Hill.
