The shutdown, now the longest in history, has caused the Federal Aviation Administration to cut flight capacity by 10% at 40 high-traffic airports, affecting both passenger and cargoflights.
The reduction in air travel and cargo movement is expected to disrupt holiday shopping and could prevent a "substantial" number of Americans from traveling for Thanksgiving, according to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
Bessent said the shutdown is causing the country’s economic prospects to get “worse and worse,” adding, “Cargo and people are both being slowed down here. And that’s for safety’s sake.”
In light of the drastic reduction in the number of flights, FedEx says it has made “necessary operational modifications” to keep up with the high number of deliveries that it is required to make in the holiday season.