The Federal Aviation Administration has announced plans to potentially limit the number of flights heading in and out of Chicago O’Hare International Airport this summer.
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The announcement comes as dozens of major international airports around the country are struggling with hours-long security lines. The delays at security are due to a partial government shutdown, meaning federal funding has been withheld. Like the 43-day shutdown in late 2025, TSA workers are once again not being paid.
But the FAA doesn’t want to limit the number of flights in and out of O’Hare due to the shutdown. Instead, it’s concerned about traffic and congestion. Here’s what we know.
Inside the FAA’s potential O’Hare intervention
This spring, the Chicago O’Hare International Airport has struggled with congestion. That’s a big problem because the airport plans to boost its daily schedule from March to October. Major commercial airlines like United and American, for example, are boosting their daily flight schedules from 20% to 30% from previous years.
That means the daily flight schedule heading in and out of O’Hare will increase to a whopping 3,080 daily operations, up from a maximum of 2,680 per day. In summer 2025, those flights took off on time around 75% of the time.
For context, Barcelona’s international airport (the sixth busiest in Spain) handles around 475 flights per day. London Heathrow, which is Europe’s busiest airport, caps out at 1,300 operations per day. Moving further east, Singapore’s popular Changi International Airport serves around 1,000 flights per day.
To be fair, Chicago O’Hare International Airport is the world’s busiest airport, as it also supports non-commercial flights. United Airlines operates around 1,120 daily flights at the airport alone.
The proposed increase to over 3,080 daily operations will cause added delays, especially during the peak summer travel season. The FAA is proposing a cap on peak days of 2,800 operations, as this will help minimize large-scale disruptions for Air Traffic Controllers and other operational staff.
The FAA argues, “After reviewing ORD’s performance throughout the Summer 2025 scheduling season … the FAA finds that an increase of 400 operations would stress the runway, terminal and air traffic control systems at the airport.”
