Airlines could be fined up to $75,000 per flight over the reduced capacity limit
Airlines that fail to meet the Transportation Department’s reduced flight capacity could be fined up to $75,000 for every flight over the threshold, the Transportation Department said.
The agency said airlines “will be liable for a civil penalty of up to $75,000 for every flight it operates above the limits set forth” in the order.
Smaller carriers that are classified as small businesses under the Small Business Act could face a penalty of up to $16,630 for every flight over the limit, the order states.
Meanwhile, among certain other conditions, the order also limits commercial space launches and reentries to between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time.
List of 40 “high traffic airports” affected by FAA cuts
The FAA’s plan to slash airline capacity includes cutting flights at 40 “high traffic airports” around the country.
The list of airports, confirmed Thursday night by the Department of Transportation, includes busy passenger airports in major cities and airline hubs as well as a number of airports with heavy cargo traffic.
Among the cities whose airports are listed are Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, New York City and Los Angeles. The list had been provided earlier to CBS News by a source familiar with the discussions.
Read more and see the full list here.
Airlines will be allowed to slowly ramp up their daily number of flight cancellations
Airlines will have more than a week to meet the Transportation Department’s goal of reducing their daily flight operations by 10%, the agency said.
In its order, DOT said airlines would be required to cut their flights by 4% on Friday and then 6% by Tuesday, Nov. 11, and 8% by Thursday, Nov. 13. They have until Friday, Nov. 14, to cut their service by 10%, assuming a deal is not reached by then to reopen the government.
“My department has many responsibilities, but our number one job is safety. This isn’t about politics – it’s about assessing the data and alleviating building risk in the system as controllers continue to work without pay,” Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said in a statement. “It’s safe to fly today, and it will continue to be safe to fly next week because of the proactive actions we are taking.”
Airlines not required to cut international flights, officials say
International flights are not included in the order issued Thursday by the Transportation Department.
“The order does not require a reduction in international flights,” DOT said in a news release. “Carriers may use their own discretion to decide which flights are canceled to reach the order’s goal.”
United Airlines, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines had already stated that their international service would not be part of their cancellations.
Air traffic control union leader says flight reductions are needed for safety
Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, says every day the government shutdown drags on and workers go without pay, “risk is going to increase.”
Air traffic controllers “have to be 100%, 100% of the time,” he told CBS News’ Major Garrett on “The Takeout.” “But now they’re worried about putting gas in their car. They’re worried about putting food on the table. They can’t even pay for child care in some instances. So as that risk increases, you have to begin reducing the capacity of the of the system and take down the number of flights in order to ensure the safety of it.”
Southwest, American Airlines detail Friday’s flight cancellation numbers
Both Southwest Airlines and American Airlines disclosed that they are cutting about 4% of their scheduled flights Friday.
Southwest Airlines said in a statement provided to CBS News Thursday that it has “proactively canceled” 120 flights Friday, calling it a “small portion of our daily schedule.” It said it also expected to cancel fewer than 100 flights on Saturday,
The airline said its flight cuts on Friday amounted to a “4% reduction in flying across the 34 of the more than 117 airports we serve.”
“The vast majority of our Customers’ flights will not be disrupted, and Southwest will communicate directly with affected Customers as soon as possible,” the airline said in a statement.
American Airlines also said it was cutting about 220 flights daily Friday through Monday, amounting to 4% of its scheduled flights at 40 airports.
“Even with these cancellations, we plan to operate around 6,000 daily flights,” the airline said.
Meanwhile, the Alaska Air Group told CBS News in a statement that it only expected “a few dozen cancelations” Friday across its subsidiaries, which include Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air and Hawaiian Airlines.
— Kris Van Cleave and Kathryn Krupnik
Check before you head to the airport — and don’t check luggage
Travel experts say passengers should be extra vigilant in monitoring communications from their airline before heading to the airport.
John Rose, chief risk and security officer at Altour, a travel management company, recommended that travelers use an airline’s app to track inbound flights to anticipate any delays.
“The main thing to watch is that the flight is still going, that it’s on time. That’s a trick that’s easy to do on the airline’s app,” he told CBS News.
Avoid checking luggage if possible, but Rose also advises packing a little extra, including essential medications, just in case.
“Plan to be stuck somewhere for an extra day,” he said.
Read more here.
Some of the nation’s busiest airports to be affected
The expected flight cancellations on Friday will affect some of the busiest airports in the country, including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and all three major airports in the New York City area, LaGuardia, JFK and Newark.
United Airlines expects to cancel nearly 200 flights a day this weekend, but says it is doing its best to minimize the impact on customers systemwide.
“We’re trying to be really thoughtful about where those flights come out,” said David Kinzelman, United’s chief customer officer.
“The key for customers to avoid being stranded is early action, early communication. That’s why we’re getting ahead of the curve now and proactively putting in our cancellations for today, for the next several days, to give customers time to plan ahead.”
Consider buying a backup ticket, airline CEO suggests
Airlines are offering passengers more flexibility to rebook or refunds for canceled flights. One airline executive suggested that for urgent travel plans, passengers might want to book more than one flight as a backup.
“If you are headed to a wedding, funeral or something you must be somewhere for in the next few days — given the risk of flights [canceling] I would suggest passengers buy a backup ticket on another carrier that departs after the first ticket,” Frontier Airlines CEO Barry Biffle said in an Instagram post on Thursday.
Cancellations could be like “the worst type of snowstorm,” travel expert says
The FAA’s decision to cut back on flights comes after weeks of strain on the air traffic control system.
“Controllers … are very overburdened by short staffing, long hours and an increasing number of colleagues that have been calling off of work here after weeks without pay,” Sean Cudahy, senior aviation reporter for The Points Guy, told CBS News.
“You think about the worst type of snowstorm, the worst type of thunderstorm delay that we see where those delays kind of cascade, the cancellations, across the country — I think this is what we’re going to be dealing with,” he said, adding that the disruptions are likely to last for days on end.
American Airlines expects cuts won’t affect most of its passengers
American Airlines expects most of its passengers won’t be affected by the flight cuts.
“We expect the vast majority of our customers’ travel will be unaffected, and long-haul international travel will remain as scheduled,” the carrier said in a statement Thursday. “As schedule changes are made, we’ll proactively reach out to customers who are impacted.”
Travelers were urged to check their flights’ status on American’s website or mobile app. The airline said it wouldn’t charge a fee if passengers wanted to change their plans or request a refund.
“In the meantime, we continue to urge leaders in Washington, D.C., to reach an immediate resolution to end the shutdown,” the carrier said.
Southwest Airlines says passengers can get refund for canceled flights
Southwest Airlines passengers can receive a refund if their flight was canceled, the airline said.
The carrier said in a statement that people will be automatically booked onto another flight in most cases. Passengers can also change their flight if the new itinerary doesn’t work.
“If you choose not to travel on your new itinerary, please cancel your reservation at least 10 minutes before the new flight’s scheduled departure time,” the airline said.
Delta Air Lines expects “vast majority” of flights to go as scheduled
Delta Air Lines expects to operate most of its flights amid the cuts.
“Delta expects to operate the vast majority of our flights as scheduled, including all long-haul international service, and will work to minimize customer impact while keeping safety our top priority,” the carrier said Thursday.
The airline said it wouldn’t charge fees if flyers wanted to change, cancel or refund their flights.
“We will work to give customers as much notice as possible about any changes to their flights and apologize for any inconvenience these changes may cause,” Delta said.
Passengers were encouraged to check Delta’s website or mobile app for updates.
United Airlines CEO says cuts will affect regional flights, not travel between hubs
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said the flight cuts would affect regional flights and travel between airports that aren’t the carrier’s hubs.
“United’s long-haul international flying and our hub-to-hub flying will not be impacted by this schedule reduction direction from the FAA,” Kirby said in a note to employees that was posted on the airline’s website. “That’s important to maintain the integrity of our network, give impacted customers as many options as possible to resume their trip, and sustain our crew pairing systems.”
Here’s a list of United’s hubs, with their airport codes:
- Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
- Denver International Airport (DEN)
- Guam’s Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport (GUM)
- Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH)
- Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
- Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey (EWR)
- San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
- Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)
The airline would make “rolling updates” to its schedule as the shutdown continues, Kirby said. All customers traveling during this period were eligible for refunds.
