Federal officials have ordered Chicago O’Hare International Airport to cut about 300 flights a day from its summer schedule on the busiest travel days. The move is meant to ease delays at the nation’s busiest airport and reduce the risk of cancellations during a season when traffic is already expected to run extremely high.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the goal is to give passengers more certainty. “If you book a ticket, we want you and your family to have the certainty that you’ll fly without endless delays and cancellations,” he said in a statement.
Why O’Hare is being limited
O’Hare handles more flights than any other U.S. airport, and it also posted one of the country’s worst delay records last year. Federal officials said the planned summer schedule had become too aggressive for the airport’s current operating conditions.
More than 3,080 flights were expected on peak summer days, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration. That was a 14.9% increase from the previous summer, even as air traffic controllers dealt with taxiway closures tied to construction work.
The federal government said in a draft order that expansion plans announced by both American Airlines and United Airlines could add more pressure to an already strained airfield. Officials said the schedule would have exceeded what the airport could safely and reliably handle.
How many flights will be reduced
The new cap sets the maximum at 2,708 flights at O’Hare on the busiest days. That figure is still slightly above the peak summer limit of 2,680 flights from last year, but officials said it should help bring delays down.
On slower days, fewer cancellations will be needed because airlines were already planning fewer flights. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays are usually the lightest travel days of the week.
The limits take effect May 17 and remain in place through Oct. 24. Airlines will now review the order, adjust schedules, and notify customers whose flights are affected.
What airlines are saying
American Airlines said the FAA’s order should improve reliability and reduce delays for travelers passing through O’Hare this summer. In a statement, the airline thanked Duffy and FAA leadership for acting quickly to protect consumers and limit disruptions during the peak season.
In a memo to employees, American estimated that it may need to cut no more than 40 arrivals and departures a day. The airline said United could face more than 200 arrival and departure cuts based on the published schedules, although United did not release its own estimate.
United said it appreciates that the government found “a solution that makes sense for everyone who cares about O’Hare’s success.” Both carriers said they will study the order and decide where to make changes before contacting affected travelers.
The flight reductions are intended to balance heavy demand with the airport’s current constraints, especially as construction continues to affect operations. With peak travel approaching, the federal cap now gives airlines a tighter framework for scheduling at an airport that already sits at the center of the U.S. air network.
