The FAA has issued a temporary order limiting scheduled arrivals and departures at Chicago O’Hare International Airport to 2,708 operations per day from May 17 through October 24, 2026. The agency says the move is intended to reduce overscheduling, ease delay pressure, and improve on-time performance during a summer of continued airfield construction.
Why the FAA acted
FAA states O’Hare’s Summer 2026 schedule exceeded the airport’s practical capacity under current operating conditions. The agency pointed to ongoing western boundary tollway construction, rehabilitation work on Taxiways A & B, continued Taxiway N and Taxiway LL-related work, and other airfield impacts tied to the Terminal Area Plan.
The order says the airport’s published Summer 2026 schedules rose to more than 3,080 daily operations on peak days, or about 14.9% above the peak day in Summer 2025. FAA concluded that level of demand would strain the runway, terminal, and air traffic control systems.
How the process unfolded
FAA first convened scheduling reduction meetings on March 4, 2026, then launched a second round on March 19 after reviewing stakeholder input, docket comments, and operational data. The agency initially discussed a cap of 2,800 daily operations, then a target of 2,608, before issuing the final order at 2,708.
FAA said the process was designed to find a fair reduction formula using Summer 2025 as the baseline. The agency said that approach was consistent with Level 2 schedule facilitation practice, which generally relies on the prior corresponding season when reviewing schedules.
What stakeholders said
FAA received seven comments in total on the two notices, including input from the Chicago Department of Aviation, Airports Council International–North America, Spirit Airlines, United Airlines, Mr. Steven Endres, and two anonymous commenters.
The Chicago Department of Aviation said O’Hare’s airfield is improving and that construction impacts in Summer 2026 should be less severe in quantity, duration, and complexity than they were in Summer 2025. It also said it supported a working group involving FAA, CDA, and other stakeholders to address traffic management issues, and urged FAA to improve runway management, staffing, technology, and potential use of land and hold short operations.
Airports Council International–North America supported the direct engagement between FAA, DOT, and CDA on the operating limits and said federal partners should continue staffing airport facilities to match the airport investment at O’Hare. It also asked FAA to provide data supporting the scheduling-reduction effort, similar to the runway capacity analysis reports discussed under the slot guidelines.
Spirit said the cuts should be directed toward the two dominant carriers at O’Hare. The airline said it had already reduced its own operations at ORD by about 50% from its Summer 2024 peak and asked FAA to use carrier-specific targets, similar to the Newark Liberty delay-reduction process.
United strongly opposed the FAA’s approach, arguing that the proposed cap and the allocation of reductions were arbitrary and did not properly account for recent developments at the airport. The carrier said the agency should have considered the October 2025 gate redetermination process under the 2018 Airline Use and Lease Agreement, but FAA said its role here was limited to runway and airspace congestion, not gate allocation or lease interpretation.
United also challenged FAA’s use of the final Summer 2025 schedule as the baseline and proposed alternatives, including using the approved Summer 2026 schedule or adjusting the reduction shares to reflect gate changes. FAA rejected those arguments, saying the Summer 2025 baseline was the most reasonable way to prevent carriers from benefiting from unrealistic schedule submissions and to preserve the competitive balance at the airport.
Mr. Steven Endres and the two anonymous commenters were also included in the docket, though the document provides less detail about their specific positions.
FAA’s response
FAA said the order is a temporary measure intended to preserve safety and efficiency while reducing congestion. The agency said it agrees with efforts to improve operations at O’Hare, including possible working groups, better use of land and hold short operations, improved signage and markings, and staffing and technology upgrades.
FAA also emphasized that gate allocation is a contractual matter between the airport and air carriers, not something the agency is trying to control through this order. The agency said its role is to address airspace and operational congestion, not to alter lease agreements or gate use arrangements.
What the order requires
The order limits operations during the affected hours to 2,708 per day and allocates those operations using the authorized scheduled timings from the IATA Northern Summer 2025 season. The cap applies to scheduled operations between 6:00 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. Central Time.
FAA also said carriers must obtain written approval before moving scheduled operations in ways that would exceed the half-hour limits established in the order. It added that any exchange of authorized scheduled timings must be confirmed by FAA in writing before taking effect.
What this means for airlines
For carriers, the order means summer schedules at O’Hare must be trimmed or reshaped to fit within the new cap. FAA said airlines will retain historic priority for approved timings that are reduced or retimed under the proceedings, which should help preserve scheduling continuity for the next corresponding season.
FAA also said it may call another scheduling reduction meeting if further cuts are needed. The agency retains the right to modify or withdraw provisions of the order for good cause.
What this means for travelers
Travelers flying through O’Hare this summer may see fewer peak-hour flights, schedule shifts, and potentially some cancellations as airlines adjust to the new limit. FAA says the expected payoff is a more reliable airport operation, fewer delays, and better overall performance during a period of heavy construction.
Bottom line
FAA is temporarily holding O’Hare to a lower summer schedule so the airport can handle traffic more efficiently while construction continues. The order is aimed at preventing the airport from being pushed beyond its current capacity and at improving reliability for airlines and passengers alike.
