NEWS: Hundreds of Delays and Cancellations Hit Orlando Airport as Flights are “Reduced to a Trickle”

Things have been rough in the airline world for a few weeks now, but they’ve just taken a turn for the worse, and it looks like an end isn’t exactly in sight.

Travel has become increasingly difficult at MCO Airport in Orlando, along with many other airports around the United States, as the government shutdown continues, and the FAA has cut flights to ensure the ones that do fly are safe amid staffing challenges. Unfortunately, an end is not in sight, and it looks like things could get worse before they get better.

Today alone, November 10th, at around 12:40 PM, MCO Airport has already been having a very rough morning. They’ve had a total of 238 delays and 56 cancellations so far.

According to CNN, it’s suspected that travel this holiday season, especially for Thanksgiving, is going to be extremely difficult. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has said that he believes we’ll see air travel “reduced to a trickle” ahead of the upcoming holiday. There are so many people trying to fly home, or to other states, and there just won’t be enough flights to accommodate.

Currently, airlines are seeing a 4% reduction in domestic flights at 40 of the busiest US airports due to the FAA’s instruction, and it’s being warned that the percentage could rise to 15-20% if the shutdown doesn’t end. It’s of utmost importance that the planes that do fly do so safely, so while it is frustrating and impacts many travel plans, we also wouldn’t want to hear of planes crashing due to issues in staffing.

Even if the government opens back up soon, it’s very likely that we won’t see things immediately go back to normal. It may take some time — days or weeks — for things to get back to normal, which would still affect Thanksgiving travel.

We’ll be sure to keep you updated on this situation as it develops, so you know how it’ll affect your upcoming vacation. Stay tuned to AllEars.

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How have these flight delays and cancellations impacted you? Tell us in the comments.