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Two Kentucky airports among the 40 slated to suffer flight reductions

A single passenger walks through an empty airport. The lighting makes him a silhouette, wearing a ballcap and towing a rolling suitcase behind him. Signs around the passenger point toward TSA Precheck and standard security screening.
Stephanie Wolf - LPM
A passenger walks toward the security checkpoint at Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville.

Two Kentucky airports are among 40 on a list published by The Associated Press that will see flight reductions beginning Friday.

Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport and the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport are on the list.

The Federal Aviation Administration says it’s reducing flights by 10% at some of the nation’s busiest airports due to the ongoing federal government shutdown. The FAA says it needs to take some pressure off of air traffic controllers, who have been working without pay since the shutdown began on Oct. 1. Most have been on duty for six days a week while working mandatory overtime.

Ahead of the Friday flight reductions, the FAA has been delaying flights at some airports due to widespread staffing shortages among air traffic controllers.

Some of the biggest and busiest airports in the U.S. are on the FAA’s reduced flight list, including:

  • Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International
  • Boston Logan International  
  • Chicago O’Hare and Chicago Midway
  • Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Ft. Worth International
  • Ronald Reagan Washington National
  • Washington Dulles International 
  • JFK and LaGuardia in New York
  • Los Angeles International 

Travelers are advised to check with their airlines to see if their flights are impacted.

If the government shutdown continues, and flight reductions hold, Thanksgiving air travel could be impacted.

Kevin is the News Director at WKU Public Radio. He has been with the station since 1999, and was previously the Assistant News Director, and also served as local host of Morning Edition.