HANOVER TWP., LEHIGH COUNTY, Pa. — As major airports across the United States brace for cancelations because of the federal government shutdown, the Lehigh Valley’s regional airport is in a “wait and see” situation, an airport spokesman said Friday.
“When you think about weather or, now, a government shutdown, there's a trickle down effect on how it can impact airports,” said Colin Riccobon, director of public and government relations at Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority.
The authority oversees Lehigh Valley International Airport.
“And we're going to see how it's going to trickle down to us at some point.”
As the federal government shutdown drags on into its second month, hundreds of flights Friday are being canceled at 40 airports across the country — an effort to relieve Federal Aviation Administration staff working without pay.
While the nearest major airport to the Valley impacted is Philadelphia International, regional airports also could start to feel impacts.
LVIA has regular flights to Atlanta, Chicago and Orlando — all major hubs expected to see a 10% reduction in flights.
“What we're telling people is they need to really stay in touch and be engaged in their travel over the next week or a couple of weeks,” Riccobon said.
“And stay in contact with your airlines, because they're obviously going to be the ones that are going to be notifying passengers of any delays, cancelations or changes.”
As of Friday, the airport has seen one canceled flight, to Atlanta. However, Riccobon could not confirm whether it was related to flight reductions from the shutdown.
‘Probably the busiest time of travel’
The announcement of the flight reductions came Wednesday, about three weeks before Thanksgiving — among the busiest travel times of the year across the country.
“It's going to be important — I can't stress it enough — obviously, as you're coming up on probably the busiest time of travel, with Thanksgiving and Christmas and coming up, that people are just going to need to be very much engaged in how the aviation system is operating and how airlines are operating, and you know how that may affect them,” Riccobon said.
Last year, AAA expected a record number of travelers over the holiday, projecting 79.9 million Americans would travel 50 miles or more from home for the Thanksgiving holiday, up 2.1% from 2023.
“Thanksgiving is the busiest holiday for travel, and this year we’re expecting to set new records across the board, from driving to flying and cruising,” Vice President of AAA Travel Stacey Barber said in a November 2024 news release.
“Americans reconnect with family and friends over Thanksgiving, and travel is a big part of that. AAA continues to see travel demand soar post-pandemic with our members looking for new adventures and memorable vacations.”
A request for this year’s AAA Thanksgiving Travel Forecast, generally released the week before the holiday, was unreturned.
For those with plans to fly over the next few weeks, Riccobon advised paying attention to announcements not only from their airline, but also their airport.
While an airline is responsible for notifying passengers if there are delays or cancelations, LVIA’s website includes TSA wait times, he said, which many other airports also provide.
“We've seen across the country that TSA checkpoints have had longer lines as of late, and you don't want to miss your flight,” he said.
“So getting there early and giving yourself that extra time could be the difference between boarding your flight on time and leaving and not.”
What’s going on with the shutdown?
The shutdown started in early October, after elected leaders in Washington, D.C., failed to reach a compromise on a short-term spending package to prevent it.
The main issue is healthcare, with Democrats demanding Republicans either walk back cuts to Medicaid approved in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act or continue tax subsidies for the Affordable Care Act.
Republican leadership has balked, insisting Democrats must first vote to keep the government open before they would consider any deals.
Since then, there’s been virtually no movement toward reopening the federal government. However, the Senate is scheduled to vote Friday afternoon on a package that would reopen it.
In the interim, there are ongoing fears the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, won’t provide benefits in November.
Nearly 97,000 Lehigh Valley residents depend on SNAP, leaving local food banks and pantries scrambling to fill the gaps.
A federal judge in Rhode Island on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to find the money to fully fund SNAP benefits for November, according to the Associated Press.
The administration immediately appealed.
Federal employees continue to work without pay, prompting the LVIA to host a food drive to support them.
