Washington: Hundreds of flights in the United States have been cancelled due to air traffic restrictions imposed by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) amid the ongoing federal government shutdown. The authority started to reduce air traffic capacity at 40 major US airports to ease the pressure on air traffic controllers, who are working without pay due to an ongoing government shutdown triggered by the US Congress' failure to pass a budget. According to Emirates News Agency, data from the FlightAware portal indicates that approximately 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide on Friday. Major hubs such as Los Angeles, Dallas, and Denver are significantly affected. Airlines including American, United, Delta, and Southwest have each cancelled several dozen flights and are making efforts to rebook passengers. Many cancellations are impacting regional routes, although international connections are expected to continue operating normally for the time being. The FAA initially plans to reduce air traffic capacity by 4 percent, with potential increases up to 10 percent by the middle of the month.