Here’s How Many Delays/Cancellations Hit MSP This Weekend

There might be an end in sight to the government shutdown, but dozens of delays and cancellations still occurred at Minnesota's biggest airport last weekend.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) is the largest airport in the North Star State. So it's no surprise that a LOT of Minnesotans (and Iowans and Wisconsinites and others) head through the TSA checkpoints at MSP each year when traveling across the country and overseas.

It helps that you can fly to A LOT of different places directly from MSP without having to catch a connecting flight elsewhere. In fact, the airport says airlines at MSP served 163 nonstop destinations from the North Star State in 2023, up from 156 destinations in 2023 and 145 destinations in 2022.

FAA Mandate Tied to Shutdown Slows Flights at MSP Airport

SEE ALSO: Hate Long TSA Lines? MSP's Free Program is a Game-Changer!

But now, thanks to the ongoing federal government shutdown, MSP was included on a list of the 40 busiest airports in the country to be subject to a government-mandated 10 percent reduction in air capacity, which began Friday.

Thanks to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) order that reduced air capacity, beginning at 4 percent, as a safety precaution due to a shortage of air traffic controllers, many travellers here in Minnesota and across the country saw their flights delayed or cancelled altogether.

Hundreds of MSP Flights Delayed or Canceled Over the Weekend

According to industry site FlightAware, a total of 73 flights into or out of Minnesota have either been delayed or cancelled as a result of the cut-back as of midday on Friday. That number increased even more over the weekend at MSP:

• Saturday, November 8th - Delays: 157; Cancellations: 35
• Sunday, November 9th - Delays: 349; Cancellations: 99

It's a frustrating trend that is continuing into the workweek, as well. FlightAware says that as of midday Monday, November 10, 2025, there were 27 flights departing MSP that were cancelled along with 22 flights departing MSP that were delayed. And, there have been 39 flights heading to MSP that were cancelled, along with 31 flights heading to MSP that were delayed.

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More Flight Disruptions Could Stretch Into Thanksgiving Travel

And even though there appears to be an end to the shutdown, Kyle Potter of travel site Thrifty Traveler notes that flight disruptions could continue. And they were bad this weekend:

Sunday was worst day for travelers since the shutdown began, with over 10,000 flights delayed and nearly 3,000 canceled altogether. In fact, it was one of the worst days in air travel since the summer 2024 CrowdStrike outage, which halted virtually all flights in the U.S. for almost an entire day.

Potter also notes that disruptions will continue today, likely all week, and possibly even into the Thanksgiving travel period, though likely on a smaller scale, as airlines work to get schedules revised and get crews and planes back into position.

Those numbers are subject to change as the shutdown continues. If you're scheduled to fly out of or into MSP airport while this FAA-mandated cutback is still in place, airport officials say you should check with your airline to get the very latest updates on whether or not your flight will be delayed or cancelled.

ALSO INTERESTING: The Surprising Fact About MSP Airport You May Not Know

MSP was the 18th busiest airport in North America and served nearly 35 million passengers in 2024. It's the second-largest hub for Delta Air Lines, as well as the hometown base for Sun Country Airlines. But even if your flight isn't cancelled or delayed, there are still just some things you can't bring with you. Keep scrolling to see a list of banned items at airports here in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

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