As reductions in flight traffic mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration took effect Friday morning — prompted by the government shutdown, now into its sixth week — travelers arriving at Bay Area airports faced significant flight delays and cancellations.
The FAA announced Wednesday that it would reduce air traffic by 10 percent at 40 major aviation hubs across the country to maintain safety as air traffic controllers show signs of strain, including at San Francisco International Airport and Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport. The cuts began Friday, with a four percent reduction, and were set to grow over the weekend, reaching 10 percent by next week.
Air traffic controllers have been working unpaid since the shutdown began Oct. 1, and most have been on duty six days a week while putting in mandatory overtime. With some calling out of work due to frustration, taking second jobs or not having money for child care or gas, staffing shortages during some shifts have led to flight delays at a number of U.S. airports.
According to flight-tracking website FlightAware, 45 flights were canceled into or out of San Francisco International Airport as of Friday morning. Of those cancellations, 39 were announced Thursday, SFO spokesperson Doug Yakel said.
An early-morning group stop ordered by the FAA due to staffing levels, halting all flights, gave way a short time later to a delay spurred by clouds and fog.
On Friday morning, 90 flights departing SFO were delayed, according to FlightAware.
“Most of (the cancellations) came with advance notification to customers,” Yakel said. “(It’s) probably fair to say the 39 were related to the FAA order given the advance nature of those cancellations.”
Kaley Skantz, public information officer for OAK, confirmed Friday morning that the airport was also impacted by the airspace reductions. About a dozen departures or arrivals were canceled, according to FlightAware.
“The airlines that serve OAK are responsible for modifying their schedules to accommodate the new order,” Skantz said. “We will continue working with our airline partners and the FAA to minimize impacts to airport operations and travelers.”
Though operations seemed to be running normally Friday morning in Oakland, with relatively short security lines and only a spattering of red “canceled” notifications on the flight status board, the flight reductions had spiked anxiety for some fliers. Ryan Lavine arrived at the airport three hours early and was tracking delays to a connecting flight in Dallas.
Travelers exit after arriving at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Children and other travelers head to Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
The flights arrivals schedule shows several delays and a cancleation from San Diego to Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing flights nationwide by 10 percent starting Friday, because the federal government shutdown and staffing shortages at air traffic control towers. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Travelers exit after arriving at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
The Airport Traffic Control Tower monitors air traffic at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing flights nationwide by 10 percent starting Friday, because the federal government shutdown and staffing shortages at air traffic control towers. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Travelers wait in line to check-in before departure at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
A Southwest Airlines plane departs from Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Bill Bouer, of Alamo, and other travelers wait in line to check-in before departure at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Travelers rest at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Travelers are picked up after arriving at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Taxi drivers wait for travelers to use their service at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Travelers wait for their rides after arriving at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
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Travelers exit after arriving at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
“My flight there has been delayed twice. First it was at 6:30 p.m., now it’s like 8:45 p.m.,” Lavine said. “It’s just the government shutdown. That’s out of my control.”
Larina McClain arrived “way earlier” than she had to for her flight from Denver to Oakland.
“I have (security pre-clearance), so I was able to fly through the three-hour line at (Denver International Airport),” she said. “I hope I make it back when I head home on Sunday.”
Skantz added that those who are traveling in the coming days should verify their flight’s status with their airline and recommended downloading the airline’s app and enabling notifications.
SkyWest had the highest number of cancellations at SFO as of Friday morning, with a total of 20 — or 9% of its total planned flights, according to FlightAware. United also had 11 canceled flights. Other airlines canceling flights out of the airport included Horizon Air, Southwest, Frontier and JetBlue.
Even so, it appeared to be business as usual at the airport on Friday morning. Ticket counters at the Harvey Milk Terminal were calm, and security lines moved quickly.
“It’s not quite a disaster yet,” said Joe Seymour, a retiree from Rohnert Park, before his flight to Los Angeles.
At Oakland, Southwest canceled 10 flights — making up 5% of its total volume through the airport — and Horizon Air canceled two, according to FlightAware.
A spokesperson for United said that the airline has already made its cancellations through Sunday, which can be tracked at an online hub. The cancellations will not impact international or hub-to-hub flights, and about half of the customers impacted by the cancellations were rebooked on flights within four hours of their original travel plans.
Delta had also announced all its cancellations for flights through Sunday and was offering rebooking or refunds to customers whose flights were impacted, an airline spokesperson said Friday.
The traffic reduction will roll out over the course of several days, with Friday’s traffic expected to be reduced by about 4%. The cuts will increase to 5% Saturday, 6% Sunday and to the final 10% cut next week, federal officials have said
Ana State, assistant public information manager at Mineta San Jose International Airport, said that SJC continued to be unaffected by the flight reductions Friday morning. One flight was canceled due to heavy fog at its destination airport.
“Currently, operations at SJC are continuing without disruption,” she said. “We have not yet received any reports from our airline partners of impacts to flights at SJC.”
By sundown, the airport had seen 46 delayed flights and 8 cancellations.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Flight schedules are displayed on a screen in Terminal 1 at San Francisco International Airport on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
Travelers walk through Terminal 1 at San Francisco International Airport on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
The Airport Traffic Control Tower monitors air traffic at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing flights nationwide by 10 percent starting Friday, because the federal government shutdown and staffing shortages at air traffic control towers. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
A Delta Airlines plane flies over Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
The Airport Traffic Control Tower monitors air traffic at Oakland International Airport in Oakland, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing flights nationwide by 10 percent starting Friday, because the federal government shutdown and staffing shortages at air traffic control towers. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
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Flight schedules are displayed on a screen in Terminal 1 at San Francisco International Airport on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)