PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Federal Aviation Administration lifted the government shutdown-related flight restrictions at the busiest airports across the country.
The FAA said airlines could resume their normal schedules starting at 6 a.m. on Monday. At that time, there were nine delays and zero cancellations for flights in and out of Philadelphia International Airport. The change comes ahead of the very busy Thanksgiving travel period.
The order for airlines to reduce flights by 10% took effect on Nov. 7, as federal transportation officials, citing aviation safety, sought to take pressure off the system. Air traffic controllers' callouts increased as the government shutdown dragged on, officials said. Controllers, TSA officers, and other essential workers were not getting paid for their work.
The original plan was to reduce flights in steps, starting at 4%. The worst single day was Nov. 9, when 2,900 flights were canceled in the U.S. Many of the affected trips were regional flights.
However, the callouts dropped significantly leading up to the end of the shutdown, officials said, and the reductions never got past 6%.
At Philadelphia International, one impact of the shutdown was still in place on Monday. The Terminals A-West and F security checkpoints remained closed with no indication from officials on when they would reopen.