The FAA announced Sunday evening it would lift the agency’s flight reduction emergency order on Monday at 6 a.m., clearing the way for a return to standard operations across the National Airspace System. According to the FAA, the decision follows internal safety reviews that tracked improving trends in controller availability since the end of the federal government shutdown. Officials said the data now reflects conditions seen before the work stoppage.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement that the move will allow the FAA and the National Airspace System to resume normal operations.
“Now we can refocus our efforts on surging controller hiring and building the brand new, state of the art air traffic control system the American people deserve,” Duffy said.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford added that the agency’s operations teams have focused on the safety of travelers throughout the period and that the restored staffing levels support ending the emergency order.
With the termination of the emergency directive, the FAA said limits have been lifted on some general aviation operations at a dozen airports, where most GA flights were temporarily banned. The announcement also lifts limits on certain VFR approaches at facilities with staffing triggers, along with commercial space launches between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. local time. Parachute operations and photo missions near facilities with staffing triggers can also resume as normal.
The FAA previously soften flight restrictions last week following the shutdown’s end on Wednesday.
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