The City of Chicago has filed a formal submission urging the US Federal Aviation Administration to reject any reduction in daily flights at O’Hare International Airport below 2,800 operations for the summer 2026 season.
Officials from the Chicago Department of Aviation argue that such a limit remains unwarranted and would disrupt the national airspace system while stressing that the airport has already demonstrated manageable capacity at this level through recent infrastructure upgrades.
The Federal Aviation Administration first proposed capping flights at 2,800 per day after airlines published schedules showing peaks above 3,080 operations compared with 2,680 last summer.
Subsequent discussions indicated the agency may seek steeper reductions around two thousand five hundred or even 2,400 daily flights citing pressures on runways terminals and air traffic control resources.
A further scheduling reduction meeting between the Federal Aviation Administration airlines and city representatives is scheduled in the coming days to finalise arrangements ahead of the summer period that begins on 29 March and runs through 25 October.
The Federal Aviation Administration initially suggested a limit of 2,800 flights but later indicated steeper cuts might be needed
