Per guidance from the Federal Aviation Administration, air capacity nationwide has now been cut to 10%, prompting 40 major airports in "high-volume markets" across the country to reduce flights to ensure air safety as the government shutdown continues.
While there are no Alabama airports on the FAA's list, those in-state are still cautioning travelers about potential changes and last-minute obstacles they may encounter due to the shutdown.
Huntsville International Airport has not yet seen any impact from the FAA cuts.
"We are just not sure right now how that will affect us," a spokesperson said. "We haven't seen any delays or anything on our end. Of course, though, if they are connecting through somewhere that may be affected, then it is possible. But as far as us directly, we have not seen any delays or expect anything just yet."
Birmingham-Shuttlesworth Airport noted that, while it is not on the FAA's list of affected airports, flights delayed from those locations could cause a 'trickle down effect' on smaller airports.
"Right now, we don't know what the impact will be," said Kim Hunt, VP of Communications for the Birmingham Airport Authority. "But we do know that if the reductions go through as planned, the impacts will go well beyond the cuts at 40 airports because of the trickle-down effect."
"For example, if a flight from Atlanta to Birmingham gets canceled, that aircraft doesn't come to Birmingham and isn't available for the scheduled turn-around departure out of BHM. So, that becomes a canceled flight that would be a result of the reduction from Atlanta," Hunt explained. "The airlines don't categorize cancellations for us so we don't always know why a flight gets canceled."
"It's more important than ever in the coming days to check flight status often and stay alert for messaging from your airline," Hunt added.
Montgomery Regional Airport issued a statement saying it has not been impacted by the reductions, but flights have been canceled at multiple connecting airports.
"We don't anticipate being impacted. We have not been included on that [FAA] list. But there have been some delays and cancellations that are coming in from these major hubs, such as Atlanta or Dallas or our non-stop destinations," said Brittney Dabne, Marketing Communications Manager at Montgomery Regional Airport. "At MGM, everyone was still getting out this morning."
Dothan Regional Airport, according to a spokesperson, also doesn't expect a significant impact on its services or flight times as a result of the FAA reductions.
Mobile Regional Airport did not respond for comment and provided no updates on its social media pages.
Thousands of flights across the country are projected to be canceled as a result of the government shutdown's reduction in air capacity.
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