FAA investigates airlines for shutdown flight cuts, threatens $75K fines

The Federal Aviation Administration this week told airlines it would investigate whether they complied with Trump administration orders during the record-long government shutdown to cut flights.

The orders came in November, after the closure lasted a month and there were shortages of air traffic control personnel at airports.

The emergency order affected 40 major airports in the U.S., with cuts fluctuating between 3% and 6% for each airline before the closure ended on Nov. 12.

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In a letter sent to US airlines on Monday, the FAA warned they could face $75,000 fines for each flight that exceeds the allotted limit during the shutdown.

Airlines have 30 days to prove they are complying with the required cuts.

Air traffic controllers, like many other government employees, were not paid during the 43-day shutdown and many missed work, raising safety concerns.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford held a press conference on Nov. 5 to announce the need for cuts. (Thoss Katopodis/Getty Images)

The FAA lifted the restrictions on November 16, four days after the shutdown ended.

Although the closure was still in place on November 14, when flights were required to be reduced by 6%, only 2% of flights were actually cut, according to flight analytics firm Cirium.

The emergency order affected 40 major U.S. airports and was fluctuating between 3% and 6% cuts for each airline before the closure ended Nov. 12. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

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The cuts also had a major financial impact on airlines; Delta reported losing $200 million between Nov. 7 and Nov. 16, when the order went into effect.

More than 10,000 flights were canceled in the United States during the nine-day period.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.