Travelers Struggle as Air Traffic Cuts Begin, Worse Ahead

In some cases, the level of chaos was less than feared, but government officials warned that flight cancellations would increase in the coming days.

 According to an emergency order issued by the Trump administration, airlines were to reduce flights by 4% on Friday, then increase this to 6% by Tuesday, 8% by Thursday, and 10% by November 14. The administration said this number could rise to 20% if the shutdown continued.

Lauren Chavez read horror stories on TikTok about long delays and cancellations at US airports due to the government shutdown, with people camping out in terminals for hours.

 Out of an abundance of caution, the 28-year-old arrived at Los Angeles International Airport with her fiancé and four-year-old daughter six hours early for their 3:55 p.m. Southwest flight back to Albuquerque.

 But things were relatively calm on Friday as she sat cross-legged in busy Terminal 1 after spending a few days at Disneyland and California Adventure.

 Aside from a few flights delayed by 30 minutes to an hour, most flights were operating on schedule.

“We anticipated long TSA lines," Chavez said as her daughter clambered into her lap, watching a video on her mom’s phone, as people checked in for flights around them.

Travelers have been bracing for significant disruptions since the government announced this week that it would require airlines to reduce flight numbers to reduce risk during the government shutdown.

 But Friday's flight reductions represented only a fraction of the total flights at the nation's largest airports. However, the number of flights is expected to increase in the next few days as the Federal Aviation Administration is cutting additional flights to ease pressure on air traffic controllers, who are working without pay during the shutdown.

 Already, airlines have canceled more than 1,000 flights nationwide for the next few days, and flights were significantly delayed at many airports on Friday.

The hardest-hit airport was Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, where domestic flights were delayed an average of four hours Friday afternoon, according to FlightAware. More than 50 flights to and from Los Angeles International Airport were canceled Friday, and about 160 were delayed, according to the flight tracking website.