The longest-ever U.S. federal government shutdown, which began on Oct. 1 and came to an end on Nov. 12, led to around 670,000 federal employees being furloughed, and about 760,000 employees continued to work without pay. This included 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 security screeners, many of whom refused to work without pay, leading to understaffed airports. As a result, more than 10,000 flights were delayed and  2,900 flights were cancelled. In response, the Federal Aviation Administration mandated an initial 10% reduction in the number of domestic flights at 40 national airports — the flight cuts were supposed to be implemented gradually, beginning with a 6% cut by Nov. 11, then 8% by Nov. 13, before implementing the full 10% on Nov. 14. However, on Nov. 12, the FAA froze the domestic flight cuts at 6% due to a surge in staffing levels, especially for air traffic controllers, right before the shutdown ended. On Nov. 17, the FAA fully lifted the emergency flight cuts imposed during the shutdown. 

 Oakland San Francisco International Airport and San Francisco International Airport are among the 40 national airports that were initially required to reduce flights under the FAA mandate. SFO spokesperson Doug Yakel explains that although the airport has had to mitigate situations concerning government shutdowns in the past, mandated flight cuts were unique to the 2025 federal government shutdown. With about 1,300 federal employees at SFO working without pay, Yakel explains that even though the drastic changes to flight schedules were disruptive to the airline industry, the flight cuts still productively combatted staffing shortages.

“It was understood that the flight cuts weren’t going to solve all of those staffing shortfalls, because nobody can really predict where they’re coming from or when it will happen,” Yakel said. “But I think it was helpful for air travel customers. Let’s say there was a flight that was going to be canceled or delayed, and it would have happened while the passengers were already here at the airport. If you proactively cancel that flight before those people show up at the airport, they’re still being inconvenienced, no doubt, but at least they’re not already at the airport. They’re in the comfort of their own home being told that they are being reaccommodated.”

IRPD teacher Kavita Gupta, along with two other MVHS teachers, took eight students to the National Science Teaching Association conference in Minneapolis on Nov. 12, the morning prior to the reopening of the government. After hearing of the unprecedented delays and the cancellations of many domestic flights, Gupta remembers feeling nervous about traveling, especially with a group of students. However, to her surprise, she described her travel experience as “seamless,” which she credits to the dedication of the airport staff.

“I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God, What if we get stuck with kids? What if they can’t put us all on the same plane?’” Gupta said. “But everything went completely seamless. Even if they weren’t getting paid, all of the workers had such a good attitude. We were just so thankful. They were making conversation and asking the kids, ‘Where are you going? What are you going to do? Oh, you’re doing science. I remember my periodic table from high school, too.’”

 Stony Brook University junior and MVHS alum ‘23 Aishwarya Samptur planned to fly home but after receiving an email from Delta Airlines which detailed that because of flight cuts and staff shortages— leading to possible delays or cancellation of flights — Samptur and other passengers had the option to either remain on the flight, change their tickets or cancel it free of charge. In addition to her experience with air travel, Samptur also notes that other forms of transportation — especially local railroad systems around Long Island, where SBU is located — were also impacted. Specifically, the Long Island Rail Road, which Samptur says is widely utilized by SBU students, was affected by the Federal Railroad Administration furloughing 23% of its staff during the government shutdown.

“I know a lot of people who commute to SBU have been struggling to get to school, because the LIRR has been affected as well,” Samptur said. “A lot of the LIRR workers were on strike for obvious reasons. Many professors had to accommodate commuters that were forced to miss school because of these issues.”

Following the conclusion of the government shutdown, the number of delayed and cancelled flights continues to decline. Despite the reduction in disruptions, Yakel believes that the staff shortages exacerbated by the government shutdown represent a larger issue that the aviation industry faces —still disrupting air travel, especially during the holiday season.

“There will be some lingering effects in terms of those flight schedule reductions and lingering effects in terms of furloughed air traffic controllers calling in sick,” Yakel said. “We’re still going to face these issues as we go into the holiday travel season with an air traffic system that doesn’t have enough air traffic controllers. But even once levels return to normal, there is still a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers, which is an issue that we engage with elected officials in Washington, Sacramento and San Francisco to address.”

Regardless of the efforts required moving forward in order to recover from the effects of the shutdown, Yakel recalls the community among members of the airport workforce. Additionally, he notes the efforts SFO has attempted to mitigate financial discomfort for employees, such as offering free employee commuter buses for federal workers during the shutdown as well as requesting airport restaurants to offer a 50% discount to essential federal workers impacted by the shutdown. 

“During the shutdown, we saw different ways of support play out,” Yakel said. “I remember once, Alaska Airlines pilots delivered pizza up to the air traffic control tower, which was great. We saw around 82% of our airport restaurants signed on to offer that deep 50% discount. Also, we made some financial guidance counselors available, understanding that especially in the Bay Area, going more than 30 days without a paycheck — that’s really impacting the bottom line for a lot of people.”

Samptur agrees with Yakel in prioritizing the needs of federal employees, especially during a government shutdown. She believes that the government shutdown uncovered a broader issue in the U.S government of not providing enough support for the federal workers, especially in the transportation industry. 

“These are fundamental workers to our society,” Samptur said. “We rely on them for basic things like public transportation. Our country could benefit from considering the needs of the people, especially those who work under the government. We need to listen to what they’re asking of everybody else and the government.”