The Federal Aviation Administration has announced it will be cutting 10% of all flights due to the current U.S. government shutdown. Among the affected airports is Orlando Airport, the major hub for those traveling in and out of Disney World. We’re sharing everything you need to know.

As we head into the holiday season, we’re also entering one of the busiest travel times of the year. For the 2024 Thanksgiving season, Airlines for America projected that U.S. airlines would see more than 31 million passengers, an all-time high.

So far, 2025 is looking a bit different. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) just announced it will be reducing flight capacity by 10% at 40 major airports across the country due to the current government shutdown. The restrictions will go into effect the morning of Friday, November 7, affecting a long list of airports. Among those that will see a cut is Orlando International Airport, which serves at the major hub for those flying in and out of Disney World.

What to Know About the Airline Cuts

According to ABC News, flight reductions will start at 4% on November 7, before working their way up to 10%. The flights impacted by these reductions are scheduled during the hours of 6 AM and 10 PM. International flights are exempt from the cuts.

Orlando International Airpots. Photo by Cliff Wang.

“Our sole role is to make sure that we keep this airspace as safe as possible. Reduction in capacity at 40 of our locations. This is not based on light airline travel locations. This is about where the pressure is and how to really deviate the pressure,” FAA Administrator Bedford said during a press conference on November 5.

Orlando Flight Cancellations

For Orlando International Airport, cutting 10% of its flights per day would impact approximately 100 flights, according to the Observer. As of 8:15 AM on November 7, over 100 Florida flights have been cancelled, according to the live tracking site FlightAware. Most of these are at larger airports, such as Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Orlando, and Miami.

The Palm Beach Post reported that, nationwide, over 820 flights within, into, or out of hte United States have been cancelled as of Friday morning.

Airports Affected by the Cuts

The FAA has shared a complete list of airports that will see cuts, including:

• Anchorage International
• Baltimore/Washington International
• Boston-Logan International
• Charlotte Douglas International
• Chicago Midway International
• Chicago O’Hare International
• Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International
• Dallas-Fort Worth International
• Dallas Love Field
• Denver International
• Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County
• Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International
• George Bush Houston Intercontinental
• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International
• Honolulu International
• Houston Hobby
• Indianapolis International
• Las Vegas Harry Reid International
• Los Angeles International
• Louisville Muhammad Ali International
• Memphis International
• Miami International
• Minneapolis-Saint Paul International
• New York LaGuardia
• New York John F. Kennedy International
• Newark Liberty International
• Oakland San Francisco Bay International
• Ontario International
• Orlando International
• Philadelphia International
• Phoenix Sky Harbor International
• Portland International
• Ronald Reagan Washington National
• San Diego International
• Salt Lake City International
• San Francisco International
• Seattle-Tacoma International
• Tampa International
• Teterboro
• Washington Dulles International

What Happens if Your Flight is Cancelled

How airlines are handling the cuts depends on the airline. For example, Southwest has shared that it will be notifying passengers if their flight is cancelled. In most cases, they will automatically rebook you to another flight. However, if your flight has been cancelled and you don’t want to travel, you are eligible for a refund.

United Airlines shared that its long-haul international flying and our hub-to-hub flying will not be impacted by this schedule reduction direction from the FAA. Instead, they plan to focus schedule reductions on regional flying and domestic mainline flights that do not travel between our hubs. They have also shared that any customer traveling during this period is eligible for a refund, even if their flight is not impacted.

No matter what airline you are flying, the best recommendation is to download your airline’s app, where you can track up-to-the-moment status. This will allow you to see if your flight has been delayed or cancelled, and what the airline’s policy is.

Some apps have a “Where’s My Plane?” feature that will allow you to see where your airplane is at any given time. This can help determine ahead of time how it’s performing, and whether it’s already been backed up or delayed. If your airline does not have that feature, you can use flight trackers such as FlightAware.