FAA orders Chicago O'Hare International Airport to cut over 300 planned flights daily between May and October

The Federal Aviation Administration has made a decision about flight traffic at Chicago O'Hare International Airport and is ordering flight reductions of more than 300 trips per day over the busy summer travel season.

The FAA is restricting O'Hare to 2,708 flights per day from May 17 to Oct. 24. A total of 3,080 flights were currently scheduled at O'Hare for peak summer days in 2026.

The FAA has been meeting with airlines since late February on the reductions. The decision to implement these restrictions were driven by concerns about capacity and operational delay issues.

The 2,708 flights is a compromise between what the airport wanted to run and how many flights came in and out of O'Hare in the summer of 2025, which was between 2,554 and 2,680. The FAA wanted to cap the number of flights at 2,608 a day, while the Chicago Department of Aviation proposed a cap of 2,800 flights per day.

Some proposed numbers even went as low as 2,400 flights per day.

The final number is on the higher end of those numbers and only about 100 more than the peak of last year.

The FAA said in a statement it is taking additional steps to help improve safety and efficiency at O'Hare, including bringing in more air traffic controllers and speeding up controller training, optimizing routes and airspace to reduce delays, and increasing their communication between the agency, the airport and airlines during potential high-risk periods.

"If you book a ticket, we want you and your family to have the certainty that you'll fly without endless delays and cancellations," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in  statement. "We successfully turned Newark Liberty International into the most on-time airport in the Tri-State Area by fixing telecoms issues at record speed and reducing overcapacity. Applying that same strategy at O'Hare...will reduce delays and make this busy summer travel season a little easier."

"Our number one priority is the safety of the flying public, and that means ensuring airline schedules reflect what the system can safely handle," said FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford. "We appreciate the airlines working together with us to reach a responsible level of operations that strengthens safety and delivers a more reliable travel experience for the American public."

American Airlines issued a statement on the decision, writing in part, "American is committed to investing in and ensuring the best possible experience for our customers in Chicago and across our entire network.  We are grateful to Secretary Duffy, Administrator Bedford, and their leadership teams for acting swiftly to ensure that Chicagoans and all consumers continue to benefit from sensible competition and to help minimize flight disruptions during the busy summer season."

Chicago-based United Airlines also released a statement, writing, "We appreciate Secretary Duffy, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford and the team for leading the process to find a solution that makes sense for everyone who cares about O'Hare's success. We are reviewing the FAA order and will share additional information, including any next steps, as soon as our review is complete."

American and United have been battling for more gates at O'Hare, which allocates gates to airlines based on how busy they are. The more flights in and out of O'Hare, the more gates an airline is allotted.

Full statement from American Airlines

American is committed to investing in and ensuring the best possible experience for our customers in Chicago and across our entire network.  We are grateful to Secretary Duffy, Administrator Bedford, and their leadership teams for acting swiftly to ensure that Chicagoans and all consumers continue to benefit from sensible competition and to help minimize flight disruptions during the busy summer season.  

We are pleased to have secured a sufficient level of flights through the FAA's process to operate a successful hub at O'Hare this summer and satisfy American's strategic objectives. Once implemented, the FAA's action will improve reliability and reduce delays for customers traveling from, to, and through O'Hare this summer, and ensure Chicago O'Hare retains its longstanding dual-hub structure.      

American has deep roots in the Chicago dating back to our first flight 100 years ago and our commitment to the Windy City is unwavering.  We look forward to serving Chicago for another 100 years and meeting the needs of our customers at O'Hare this summer.