It seems like it’s been ages since we’ve had a functional federal government, and now the ripple effects are starting to reach travelers on the move for the holiday season. The Federal Aviation Administration has warned that with thousands of air-traffic controllers and safety inspectors working without pay, staffing shortages could soon force a 10 percent reduction in flights at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports, including Los Angeles International, San Francisco International, and Denver International Airport.
Holiday travel may be particularly chaotic if the shutdown continues into Thanksgiving, which is less than two weeks away. The FAA, already critically under-staffed, has already begun slowing flight operations at select hubs, and major airlines are bracing for cascading delays as controllers call in sick or burn out under mounting stress. The Transportation Security Administration, another agency hit by furloughs, is also reporting longer checkpoint lines as employees face missed paychecks.
For travelers in the western U.S. heading home, these disruptions could quickly snowball, as many are making connections to their final destinations. A missed leg from Salt Lake City or Seattle could throw off an entire trip to smaller regional airports that serve gateway towns near Yosemite, Big Sur, or Jackson Hole. The same holds true for cross-border travelers: while international flights to Canada and Mexico aren’t included in the FAA’s initial cutbacks, any domestic delay can still derail a carefully timed connection.
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On the ground, national parks, monuments, and federal lands across the region are still feeling the strain. Park rangers have been furloughed, visitor centers shuttered, and routine maintenance paused—echoing previous shutdowns that left trash piling up and roads unplowed in popular recreation areas. It’s an unsettling echo of what we saw during last year’s holiday travel chaos across the West, when bomb-cyclone storms and mass flight cancellations stranded thousands.
Aside from heeding our Holiday Travel Survival Guide, it’s advised to pad schedules, book morning flights when possible, and keep a close eye on airline alerts. It’s a sobering reminder that federal systems quietly power the ease of movement we often take for granted and until Congress acts, patience and flexibility may be our most essential carry-ons.