The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has lifted all flight restrictions at 40 major U.S. airports that were imposed during the recent government shutdown, the longest in the country's history, that ended on November 12.

Airlines resumed normal operations starting at 6 a.m. ET on November 17, following improvements in air traffic controller staffing.  

"U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Bryan Bedford announced that the agency's flight reduction emergency order will be terminated on Monday, November 17 at 6 a.m. This means normal operations can resume across the National Airspace System (NAS)," the FAA said in a November 16 announcement.

Bedford said the decision to rescind the order reflects the steady decline in staffing concerns across the NAS.

 
Staffing levels have continued to snap back into place since the end of the government shutdown. 

The FAA ordered a 10% reduction in scheduled flights at 40 major U.S. airports starting November 7 amid the federal government shutdown that has left air traffic controllers unpaid and understaffed. The FAA said then that it was short more than 2,000 controllers and cited safety concerns as the reason for the temporary reduction in air traffic volume.

The 40 impacted airports include key cargo hubs such as Memphis International (MEM), FedEx's global superhub; Louisville Muhammad Ali International (SDF), UPS Worldport; Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (CVG) – DHL's North American hub;  Chicago O’Hare (ORD); Los Angeles International (LAX); Newark Liberty (EWR), JFK, and LaGuardia (LGA); Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson (ATL); Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW); and Miami International (MIA) – the top U.S. airport for international freight tonnage, especially to Latin America.

Other affected airports include Denver (DEN), Phoenix (PHX), Seattle-Tacoma (SEA), San Francisco (SFO), and Washington Dulles (IAD), all of which support a mix of dedicated freighters and belly cargo operations.

The Airforwarders Association (AfA) has welcomed the end of the longest federal government shutdown in history, and urged policymakers to reverse flight capacity reductions that caused around 10,000 flights to be cancelled and widespread disruption across the air cargo sector.

Brandon Fried, executive director of the Airforwarders Association (AfA), told Asia Cargo News at the Air Cargo Americas conference in Miami that cargo flows could normalize within a week following the end of the shutdown.

While some Black Friday shipments may face delays, he said air freight operations for the broader holiday season are expected to remain unaffected.

In a separate statement, Fried said: "We now need a rapid return to predictable operations. Restoring full staffing and reversing the cuts in flight capacity is essential to keeping cargo moving, protecting economic activity, and ensuring that federal employees who kept working during the shutdown are paid promptly."

Fried also called for clear communication on the timeline for reinstating full capacity, noting that forwarders require dependable schedules to meet customer commitments and maintain supply chain integrity.