There are growing concerns that the current flight schedule at O’Hare International Airport may exceed the airport’s capacity and place undue stress on its safety systems, including runways, terminals, and air traffic control.
A meeting is scheduled for next week to discuss a requested reduction in flights, after which the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) could issue a formal order.
### Flight Schedule Pressures Amid Airport Expansion
United and American Airlines are engaged in a fierce competition to dominate O’Hare, which is currently undergoing a major expansion. Both carriers are attempting to add as many flights as possible in an effort to control the most gates and increase their market share.
According to the FAA, summer schedules currently plan for over 3,080 daily operations on peak days, citing data from Cirium. Last year, the summer daily peak was 2,680 operations. The FAA is proposing a limit of 100 hourly departures and arrivals, which would amount to approximately 2,800 daily operations.
Joe Schwieterman, a transportation professor at DePaul University, explained, “O’Hare was slow to come back from the pandemic, and now suddenly it’s the hottest airport in America. It outperformed every other major hub in the last year. The expansion I’m seeing by both United and American are just off the charts in many ways. And the FAA is having to blow the whistle saying, you know, there may just not be enough capacity for all this.”
### Potential Impact on Passengers
It remains unclear how these flight reductions will affect passengers who have already purchased tickets for this summer. However, airlines have some time to make necessary adjustments.
United Airlines issued a statement saying, “We appreciate Secretary Duffy and FAA Administrator Bedford’s leadership in convening this meeting. We share their commitment to running a safe and reliable operation out of ORD and look forward to a collaborative discussion.”
A spokesperson for American Airlines added, “American commends Secretary Duffy, Administrator Bedford and the FAA for taking proactive action to ensure the operational integrity of the airfield and airspace in Chicago. The FAA now has the opportunity to achieve an improved customer experience for passengers traveling from, to, and through Chicago this summer.”
### O’Hare’s Future Growth Plans
The Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) highlighted significant developments: “This transformative effort created a comprehensive eight-runway system, enabling O’Hare to support more flight operations than any other airport in the nation.”
Under Mayor Johnson’s leadership, O’Hare is well-positioned to accommodate traffic growth beyond 2025 levels. To maximize the runway investment, the CDA is advancing the ORDNext capital program, which includes constructing two new satellite concourses and a new Global Terminal to replace Terminal 2.
The CDA looks forward to continued collaboration with the U.S. Department of Transportation and airline partners in the coming days to finalize a temporary adjustment to the summer schedule at O’Hare. This will ensure safe and efficient operations while taking into account current gate availability, air traffic control staffing capacity, and ongoing construction activity.
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*ABC News contributed to this report.*
https://abc7chicago.com/post/faa-ask-airlines-reduce-flights-chicagos-ohare-airport-summer-saying-schedule-could-stress-safety-systems/18658866/