The Federal Aviation Administration announced Friday it will extend its daily flight cap at Chicago O’Hare International Airport through October 30, 2027 — more than a year beyond the order’s previous expiration date of October 24, 2026.
Under the directive, total daily arrivals and departures at O’Hare remain limited to 2,708 operations, a roughly 10 percent reduction from the 3,080 daily flights airlines had originally scheduled for this summer. The FAA said the cap was first put in place in April after United Airlines and American Airlines submitted summer schedules that would have pushed the airport beyond its operational capacity.
The agency cited ongoing airfield construction as a primary driver of the extension. O’Hare is in the midst of its multibillion-dollar ORDNext modernization program, which includes major terminal and airfield work — among it a new O’Hare Global Terminal slated to replace Terminal 2. According to the FAA, construction projects and airfield adjustments are expected to continue limiting capacity through at least next summer.
“FAA finds that significant delay and operational disruption would occur at O’Hare if the Order were to expire as originally scheduled,” the agency said in a statement.
The roots of the cap stretch back to the summer of 2025, when fewer than 60 percent of O’Hare arrivals and departures ran on time, according to the FAA. Even with restrictions in place this summer, the airport has continued to face challenges — including severe thunderstorms and lengthy taxi times. O’Hare currently ranks as the worst U.S. airport for taxi times, with gate-to-takeoff averages exceeding 28 minutes and post-landing taxi averages of more than 18 minutes, according to Simple Flying.
Both hub carriers at O’Hare — United Airlines and American Airlines — are required to hold their scheduled capacity at prior-year levels for the duration of the order. American issued a statement backing the extension. “This is a prudent decision that will help maintain operational stability, improve reliability, reduce delays, and support a more predictable travel experience,” American said, adding that its winter schedule is already in compliance and no further cuts or cancellations will be needed.
The extension also effectively freezes an escalating scheduling competition between American and United, who have been battling for gate allocations at O’Hare under the airport’s use-it-or-lose-it slot model. The FAA said it reserves the right to review future schedule submissions if either carrier resumes aggressive scheduling.
Source: Chicago Sun-Times, Simple Flying, ABC7 Chicago/WLS-TV, NBC Chicago, CBS Chicago
