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The shutdown-induced travel chaos is now even hitting the 1%.

Private jets have been effectively banned from 12 major US airports — including JFK International and Newark Liberty, according to an industry trade group — as the Federal Aviation Administration struggles to find enough air traffic controllers to work.

The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), a group that represents the private aircraft industry, condemned the FAA’s decision to place new flight restrictions at some of the country’s largest airports on Monday, which the group claims leaves no room for private jet travel.


  Private jets seen on the tarmac at Friedman Memorial Airport on July 4, 2022. Getty Images Private jets seen on the tarmac at Friedman Memorial Airport on July 4, 2022. Getty Images

In addition to JFK and Newark, private jets are now banned from Los Angeles, Chicago O’Hare, Houston, Atlanta, Denver, Dallas-Fort Worth and Ronald Reagan Washington National — among others, the NBAA said. 

“Further restrictions were announced that will effectively prohibit business aviation operations at 12 of those airports, disproportionately impacting general aviation, an industry that creates more than a million jobs, generates $340 billion in economic impact and supports humanitarian flights every day,” NBAA President Ed Bolen said in a statement.

The FAA issued a Notice to Airmen order “restricting general aviation operations” at the 12 airports, the agency told the Post. 

The FAA will allow exceptions for emergency operations, medical transport, law enforcement activities, and other necessary missions, and will adjust, extend, or cancel these restrictions as operational needs dictate,” the agency added.

The FAA did not say if the order effectively bans private jet travel. 

Flying private is still allowed at secondary airports for major cities, including LaGuardia and Teterboro in the New York City area.

Teterboro, a favorite among private flyers, however, has already been suffering from the shutdown, with the situation only getting worse as the average delays are now over one-and-half hours as of Monday afternoon, according to FlighAware’s tracker.


  People in O’Hare Airport wait online on November 7, 2025 as thousands of flights are canceled. AFP via Getty Images People in O’Hare Airport wait online on November 7, 2025 as thousands of flights are canceled. AFP via Getty Images

There are delays in and out of the New Jersey airport, with flights sometimes being diverted to other private air hubs like the Stewart International airport in Orange County, one insider source told The Post. 

The FAA order comes after major travel chaos hit the nation over the weekend, with Newark and LaGuardia among the airports experiencing the largest percentage of delays over a lack of staffing. 

Monday marks the fourth day of the FAA’s air traffic staffing reductions, where the agency has been forced to shed 10% of its workers across 40 high-volume airports due to the government shutdown. 

Bolen said the NBAA has joined the Modern Skies Coalition, a board made up of a wide range of aviation stakeholders, to demand the government shutdown end immediately. 

While a deal is currently in the works between Senate Democrats and Republicans to end the 41-day-long shutdown, it could take days for air traffic to return to normal, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned.  

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