Frontier CEO on $8m a year slammed for suggesting cash-strapped flyers buy BACK-UP ticket as government shutdown cancels 1,200 flights and counting: Live updates

The CEO of Frontier Airlines has recommended that travelers buy backup tickets with another airline to avoid being stranded.

‘If you are flying Friday or in the next ten days and need to be there or don’t want to be stranded I highly recommend booking a backup ticket on another carrier,’ Frontier CEO Barry Biffle warned.

‘If your flight is cancelled your chances of being stranded are high so I would simply have a backup ticket on another airline.’

He also suggested passengers purchase flights above basic levels so they can reuse the ticket value or get a credit with the airline.

Biffle has served as CEO of the low-cost air carrier since March 2016 and as president since July 2014. He also sits on Frontier’s Board of Directors.

The CEO received $8.5million in total compensation in 2023, making him one of the highest-paid airline executives in the country, economists allege.

Biffle also lives in a $3.5million mansion in Longmont, Colorado.

Pictured: Frontier Airlines CEO Barry Biffle in 2016

Biffle lives in a $3.5million mansion in Longmont, Colorado.

A leading economist has warned that the economic damaged caused by the longest government shutdown in US history is ‘far worse’ than experts anticipated.

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told Fox Business that the travel and leisure industries are facing heavy pressure by the shutdown.

‘If the air travel thing goes south for another week or two,’ Hassett warned, ‘you could say that they would have at least a near-term downturn.’

President Donald Trump’s Administration has urged Americans to call up their Democratic legislators and urge them to reach a funding deal.

The White House has repeatedly blamed the Democrats for the ongoing government shutdown, which is now the longest in US history.

In an unsurprising move Friday, as the FAA cutbacks went into effect, the administration once again placed blame on their opposition.

‘Flights delayed. Plans canceled. Chaos everywhere. All thanks to Democrats keeping YOUR government shut down,’ the official White House account tweeted before instructing citizens to demand action from lawmakers.

Travelers are waiting in line at a security checkpoint at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois were hundreds of flights have been cancelled this morning.

O’Hare Airport, a hub for major air carrier United Airlines, is among the airports hardest hit this morning. Wait times in security queues are expected to be longer than normal.

Travelers are waiting in long lines at the security checkpoints at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. The massive queues were even seen at precheck and priority security.

A TSA officer checks passenger identification documents at a security checkpoint at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia this morning.

Travelers wait for their flights amid nationwide cancellations and delays at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia this morning.

President Donald Trump said he believes it is safe to fly in America, even as the FAA is set to reduce flights across the country.

‘No I’m not concerned about it,’ Trump said on Thursday when asked if it is safe to fly.

‘As Sean Duffy announced, they’re cutting in certain areas, 10 percent, and they want to make sure it’s 100 percent safe.’

Senator Ted Cruz has blamed Democrats for the FAA cutbacks that are disrupting travel plans for thousands of Americans.

Congress has ground to a standstill, leaving the entire federal funding spigot closed, as Republicans and Democrats remain in a bitter standoff over spending priorities, including over healthcare.

The FAA has now imposed flight reductions to take pressure off air traffic controllers, who are federal employees and have been working without pay during the shutdown.

The cutbacks come as the Trump administration ramps up pressure on Democrats to end the shutdown.

‘The FAA doesn’t want to do this, but they’re doing it to protect passenger safety,’ Cruz said this morning, defending the FAA. ‘Enough is enough. The political stunt the Democrats are pulling is hurting real people.’

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy claimed he has done everything possible to mitigate the impacts of the FAA flight cutbacks.

‘I have done all I can to minimize disruption in the airspace. I’m trying to get people where they want to go and to get there safely,’ Duffy said this morning.

He added that the Transportation Department had to take ‘unprecedented action’ because the US is in an ‘unprecedented shutdown.’

Earlier this week, Duffy warned warned there could be chaos in the skies if the government shutdown drags on long enough for controllers to miss their second full paycheck next week.

‘This isn’t about politics, it’s about assessing the data and alleviating building risk in the system,’ he added, pushing back against criticism that the order aims to increase pressure on Democrats to end the shutdown.

The FAA cutbacks have caused a trickledown effect across the travel industry with rental car reservations having spiked by 20 percent.

Hertz has received a 20 percent year-over-year increase in one-way rentals over the past two days, a spokesperson confirmed to the Daily Mail.

The surge in car rentals comes as thousands of routes are being slashed as the FAA reduces flight schedules to ease strain on air traffic control.

‘We join the airlines in urging Congress to swiftly pass a clean continuing resolution and restore certainty for travelers,’ Hertz CEO Gil West in a statement. ‘Every day of delay creates unnecessary disruption.’

When approached by the the Daily Mail about the financial impact on consumers, Hertz did not specify how the surge in demand was impacting rental rates.

The company, however, did offer the following advice to customers to ‘ensure a fast and smooth car rental experience.’

• Add your flight information to your car rental reservation.
• Book at a neighborhood location to avoid airport disruptions.
• Modify your reservation on the Hertz app or Hertz.com if your travel plans get disrupted.
• Join Hertz Gold Plus Rewards to skip the counter and go straight to your car when you land at the airport.

• Anchorage International
• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International
• Boston Logan International
• Baltimore/Washington International
• Charlotte Douglas International
• Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International
• Dallas Love
• Ronald Reagan Washington National
• Denver International
• Dallas/Fort Worth International
• Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County
• Newark Liberty International
• Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International
• Honolulu International
• Houston Hobby
• Washington Dulles International
• George Bush Houston Intercontinental
• Indianapolis International
• New York John F Kennedy International
• Las Vegas McCarran International
• Los Angeles International
• New York LaGuardia
• Orlando International
• Chicago Midway
• Memphis International
• Miami International
• Minneapolis/St Paul International
• Oakland International
• Ontario International
• Chicago O’Hare International
• Portland International
• Philadelphia International
• Phoenix Sky Harbor International
• San Diego International
• Louisville International
• Seattle/Tacoma International
• San Francisco International
• Salt Lake City International
• Teterboro
• Tampa International

Air traffic controllers have been working without pay for more than a month and are now about to miss their first biweekly paycheck.

Controllers are expected to receive $0 paychecks for the work they completed during the shutdown. This comes after their last check only covered 90 percent of their total pay.

Air traffic controllers are considered essential workers and have been ordered to work without pay throughout the shutdown.

Many are pulling six-day work weeks with mandatory overtime, and increasing numbers of them have begun calling out as the financial strain and exhaustion mount.

Some have even been forced to pick up second jobs just to make ends meet.

‘My financial obligations were mounting. I wanted to get ahead of the situation. The writing was on the wall,’ air traffic control specialist Jack Criss told NBC News.

Criss is now driving for DoorDash.

United Airlines has published a list of all its mandated flight cancellations though Sunday. They can be viewed on a special website.

The airline is offering refunds to any passengers who do not want to fly amid the FAA cutbacks

United did note that about half of its impacted customers have been able to be rebook flights within four hours of their original departure time.

The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing air traffic to maintain travel safety as air traffic controllers exhibit signs of strain amid the ongoing government shutdown.

Experts predict the cutback could represent as many as 1,800 flights a day and upwards of 268,000 seats combined.

Airlines have already started warning customers that their travel plans are likely to be impacted by the flight reductions.

Vice President JD Vance warned that the government shutdown will lead to an ‘aviation emergency.’

Writing on X, he said, ‘What the Democrats are doing on the government shutdown is genuinely unprecedented, and while the administration has shielded the American people from the worst of the consequences, all of this is coming, and soon:

‘An aviation emergency that will lead to significant travel delays for all Americans. Food stamp and other assistance programs running out for needy Americans. Great strains on our military and national security.

‘The shutdown has now passed from farce into tragedy, and the consequences of this national emergency fall on every senator and congressman who refuses to open the government.’

Thousands of flights have been canceled across the United States after the Trump administration ordered reductions to ease strain on air traffic controllers amid the longest government shutdown in US history.

Flight reductions due to take effect gradually, starting at four percent this and rising to 10 percent next week if Congress still doesn’t reach a funding deal.

What does this mean for you? The Daily Mail explains:

SkyWest has recorded the largest number of flight cancellations this morning, according to the latest data from FlightAware.

The airline operates four major carriers including American, Alaska, Delta and United.

As of 8am, SkyWest has already canceled 172 flights today, accounting for 6 percent of its routes. Forty flights have been delayed.

A top cosmetic surgeon is driving will be driving from New York City to Utah after her flight got canceled and rebooked overnight.

Karen Soika arrived at Newark airport this morning, only to find out that she would not be flying today.

She has opted to rent a car and drive roughly 2,100 miles so she can make it to Utah by Tuesday.

‘From what I hear with the counters, the airline counters and TSA, they literally said to me: “lf I were you, I wouldn’t travel over the next three days’,” Karen Soika told CNN.

She added that she suspects the cancellations and delays are only going to get worse as the FAA increases its flight reductions from 4 percent to 10 percent by next week.

Air carriers are required to refund customers whose flights are canceled, according to the Department of Transportation

However, they are not required to cover secondary costs such as food and hotel accommodations unless a delay or cancellation results from a contributing factor that is within the control of the airlines.

United, Southwest and American all said they will try to minimize the impact on consumers as they cut their schedules to comply with the order.

Some air carriers are even offering all travelers – including those with non-refundable tickets – the option to voluntarily cancel their trip and receive a refund.

Pictured: Passengers travel through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on November 7, 2025

The Federal Aviation Administration issued an order to scale back flights nationwide because of the record-long government shutdown.

The order took effect this morning at 40 airports nationwide, spanning more than two dozen states and including airports that serve as hubs for major airlines.

Reductions began at 4 percent and will ramp up to 10 percent by November 14.

Airlines have said they will try to minimize impact on customers, with some planning to focus on slashing routes to and from small and medium-size cities.

Pictured: People scramble through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia yesterday – one day before the FAA’s flight reductions were scheduled to go into effect.

More than 1,100 flights have been called off before 7.30am this morning as the Federal Aviation Administration’s flight cutback order went into effect.

Over 9,800 delays have also been recorded.

Atlanta, Chicago O’Hare, Denver and LAX are among the hardest hit airports this morning, with all recording cancellation rates of 3 percent.