Shutdown Strains Skies and Hotels as Flights Fall Quiet
- MMCG
- Nov 7
- 7 min read
FAA Staffing Crisis Triggers Flight Cuts Nationwide
After more than a month without funding, the U.S. aviation system is entering uncharted territory. Nearly 13,000 air traffic controllers have been working without pay since the government shutdown began on Oct. 1¹. With staffing stretched thin and fatigue mounting, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has taken the unprecedented step of ordering airlines to cut flights by up to 10% at 40 major airports². This capacity reduction – phased in from a 4% cut starting today to 10% by next week – is aimed at “relieving pressure on the aviation system” and preventing safety from deteriorating³.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said he has “never...had a situation where we’re taking these kinds of measures”in over 35 years in aviation, calling the shutdown’s impact “new territory” for air travel⁴. He stressed the cuts are purely about safety: “When we see pressures building in these 40 markets, we just can’t ignore it… We can take action today to prevent things from deteriorating”⁵. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy noted that controllers – already 3,000 short of desired staffing levels – have been pulling mandatory six-day weeks, and many “said none of us can manage missing two paychecks”⁶. “Our job is to make the hard decisions to keep the airspace safe,” Duffy said, underscoring why officials moved to throttle back traffic rather than risk lapses⁷.
For passengers, the immediate effect is fewer flights and growing delays. On Thursday night, airlines began preemptively canceling trips ahead of the FAA order. Delta Air Lines scrubbed 170 flights for Friday, with more expected over the weekend, Southwest Airlines canceled 120 Friday flights, and United Airlines said it will cut 4% of its schedule through Sunday⁸. By Friday morning – day 37 of the funding standoff – hundreds of flights were already grounded. FlightAware data showed 445 U.S. cancellations as of Thursday afternoon as the directive took hold⁹. Analysts warn the cuts could soon swell to 1,800 daily flights – roughly 268,000 seats lost each day once the full 10% reduction is in force¹⁰.
Cancellations Hit LAX, New York and Miami Hard
A United Airlines jet departs Los Angeles International Airport. LAX, the nation’s second-busiest hub, is facing an estimated 72 daily flight cancellations on peak days under the FAA’s plan, grounding over 12,000 passengers per day¹¹.
The pain is especially acute at America’s busiest airports. In Los Angeles, normally packed departure boards are thinning out. LAX is among the 40 “high-volume markets” targeted by the FAA¹², and Cirium Analytics estimates about 72 flights a day could be cut at LAX, affecting 12,371 passengers daily¹³. That figure represents roughly 10% of LAX’s traffic – the share regulators deem necessary to keep strained controllers on duty in Southern California. On the East Coast, New York City’s airports are absorbing a similar blow. Both John F. Kennedy International (JFK) and LaGuardia (LGA) – as well as nearby Newark Liberty – are on the FAA’s list¹⁴. In these mega-markets, multiple airports are simultaneously scaling back, creating a cascade of disruptions across one of the world’s busiest air corridors¹⁵. Airlines have indicated they will prioritize mainline routes and high-demand flights, trimming frequencies on regional and off-peak services to comply with the cuts while minimizing passenger inconvenience¹⁶.
Miami International Airport (MIA), a crucial gateway for Florida and Latin America, is bracing for fallout as well. MIA handled a record 56 million passengers last year¹⁷, but now finds itself in the FAA’s crosshairs. On Wednesday, even before the 10% mandate took effect, Miami saw 95 flight delays and at least 28 upcoming cancellations for Friday in anticipation¹⁸. “It’s going to be chaos… a lot of delays, a lot of frustration, stress,” sighed one traveler at MIA who was heading back to New York and lamenting the political gridlock behind the mess¹⁹. Local officials are on high alert: “The FAA’s order to reduce flight capacity directly affects Miami-Dade’s economy and prosperity,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava warned²⁰.
Nationwide, the pattern is the same. Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson, the busiest airport in the U.S., is preparing to lose roughly 10% of its roughly 2,500 daily departures²¹. Chicago O’Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, San Francisco, Charlotte – all rank among the top 10 U.S. airports and all are grappling with schedule cutbacks under the FAA plan²². And in the Washington, D.C. region – symbolic epicenter of the shutdown – all three major airports (Dulles, Reagan National, and BWI) have been hit with capacity limits²³.
Hotels See Mixed Fortunes – and Early Warning Signs
The shutdown’s ripple effects extend beyond airports, into downtown hotels and vacation resorts that depend on the steady flow of travelers. So far, the hospitality sector in cities like Los Angeles, New York, and Miami has held steady– even thriving in some metrics – but industry analysts are wary that travel disruptions could stall a hard-won recovery. Recent data from CoStar’s hospitality market reports show strong baseline performance in these key markets through Q3 2025:
New York City hotels have been posting near-record highs. Over the 12 months through September, occupancy averaged 84.2%, ADR at $328, and RevPAR at $276²⁴. Both rates and revenue jumped about 5–6% year-over-year, driven by a resurgence in corporate travel and big-spending leisure visitors²⁵.
Miami: 12-month occupancy 73.9%, ADR $225, RevPAR $166, reflecting 2.8% annual RevPAR growth²⁶. Weekend leisure travel and group business have both contributed to gains²⁷.
Los Angeles: Occupancy 71.7%, ADR $196, RevPAR $140, up just 0.3% YoY²⁸ – signaling a clear slowdown after early-year surges.
The common thread in these cities has been resilience in travel demand through late 2025. But the FAA flight cuts are a sudden shock that could erode that resilience. Already, some cracks may be emerging. In Washington, D.C., hotel occupancy has slumped 4–6% year-over-year amid curtailed federal travel²⁹. “Economic uncertainty and waning consumer confidence are translating into booking cancelations,” warned Rosanna Maietta, CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association³⁰.
Travel and Hospitality Leaders Sound the Alarm
The aviation and hospitality industries – normally optimistic during the year’s final quarter – are instead voicing growing alarm. Trade groups and unions are pressing Congress to recognize the stakes. Geoff Freeman, president of the U.S. Travel Association, blasted the situation as “forcing difficult operational decisions that disrupt travel and damage confidence in the U.S. air travel experience”³¹. A coalition of over 30 tourism and hotel organizations noted the industry has already lost $650 million in hotel revenue and is losing $31 million per day³².
Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, warned this is “a dangerous game” with national safety implications³³. “The only way aviation keeps moving during a shutdown is because air traffic controllers and TSA officers come to work without getting paid,” she said, calling the crisis an “ongoing human factors hazard”³⁴. Nelson urged an immediate resolution: “We know what happens when the planes stop... The economy stops. The country stops.”³⁵.
Hotel owners are equally worried. In South Florida, the hospitality association warned that continued flight cuts could quickly dent hotel demand, even though October’s metrics hadn’t yet shown an impact³⁶. “Conferences get canceled, families postpone trips, and hotels lose valuable business,” said Kamalesh Patel, chairman of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association³⁷.
Looking Ahead: Holiday Turbulence or a Quick Turnaround?
Scenario 1: A Shutdown Resolution Restores Stability. If Congress reaches a deal soon, the FAA would quickly reverse the flight restrictions³⁸. Airlines say they could re-add flights within days, salvaging Thanksgiving schedules³⁹. Hotels could likewise rebound quickly, with only a brief dip in November bookings⁴⁰.
Scenario 2: Continued Disruption and Holiday Chaos. If the shutdown drags on, aviation experts warn of a potential “shutdown of the national airspace”⁴¹. The FAA might deepen capacity cuts or even halt operations at smaller airports⁴². Holiday travel could collapse, with 55 million Americans facing delays or cancellations⁴³. “People won’t get to medical treatment or see dying loved ones… The economy stops,” warned Nelson⁴⁴.
Hotels would feel it immediately. Prolonged flight cuts mean fewer guests, canceled conferences, and billions in lost lodging revenue⁴⁵. The U.S. Travel Association estimates the shutdown already shaved $1.2 billion off domestic travel spending in its first week⁴⁶.
For now, both travel and hospitality sectors are in a holding pattern. The coming days will determine whether the U.S. travel landscape returns to stability or enters the holiday season on the brink of a full-blown crisis.
November 6, 2025, by a collective of authors at MMCG Invest, LLC, a hospitality and hotel feasibility study company.
Sources
Reuters – “US FAA Orders Airlines to Cut Flights by 10% Amid Staffing Shortages” (Nov 2025)
The Guardian – “FAA Orders Airlines to Cut Flights at 40 Airports Due to Shutdown Fatigue”
FAA Press Briefing – Administrator Bedford statement transcript (Nov 6, 2025)
Los Angeles Times – “Shutdown Pushes FAA to Trim Flights: ‘We’re in New Territory’”
CNN – Interview with FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford, Nov 6, 2025
Fox Business – Transportation Secretary Duffy comments, Nov 2025
Associated Press – “FAA Orders National Flight Reductions for Safety”
FlightAware & Bloomberg – Airline cancellation summaries, Nov 2025
Reuters – Flight data report, Nov 6, 2025
Cirium Aviation Analytics – “Shutdown Cuts: 268,000 Seats per Day Grounded”
Los Angeles Times photojournalism section, Nov 2025
FAA Capacity Reduction Notice, internal memo excerpt
Cirium estimate – LAX operational data, Nov 2025
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey – “Flight Schedule Adjustments Under FAA Directive”
CNN Travel – “Northeast Corridors Face Cancellations Amid Shutdown”
Delta, United, Southwest operational statements, Nov 6–7, 2025
Miami-Dade Aviation Department, annual passenger data FY2024
WSVN Local News Miami, travel delays coverage
NBC6 Miami interview footage, Nov 6, 2025
Miami Herald – Mayor Levine Cava statement, Nov 2025
Reuters – “Atlanta Braces for FAA-Ordered Cuts”
The Guardian – “Nationwide Disruptions Grow Amid Shutdown”
Washington Post – “Airports in Capital Region Hit by FAA Capacity Limits”
CoStar Group – New York Hospitality Market Report (Nov 7, 2025)
ibid., pp. 3–4
CoStar Group – Miami Hospitality Market Report (Nov 7, 2025)
ibid., pp. 3–5
CoStar Group – Los Angeles Hospitality Market Report (Nov 7, 2025)
AHLA Market Monitor, October 2025
AHLA CEO Rosanna Maietta press release, Nov 2025
U.S. Travel Association official statement, Nov 6, 2025
Joint tourism coalition letter to Congress, Nov 2025
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA statement, Nov 6, 2025
ibid.
AFA-CWA press conference transcript, Nov 6, 2025
Greater Miami Hotel & Lodging Association, October 2025 bulletin
AAHOA press statement, Nov 2025
FAA Administrator Bedford interview (CNN), Nov 6, 2025
Delta and United operations updates, Nov 2025
NYC & Co. Tourism Market Insights Report, Q4 2025
ABC News – “Experts Warn of National Airspace Shutdown”
KTLA – “Burbank Tower Staffing Shortage Leads to Closure”
U.S. Department of Transportation Holiday Forecast, Nov 2025
AFA-CWA Sara Nelson interview, NBC Nightly News, Nov 2025
AHLA Impact Forecast, Nov 2025
U.S. Travel Association economic analysis, Nov 2025
AFA-CWA closing statement, press briefing, Nov 6, 2025