https://www.chicagotribune.com/busin...m5u-story.html

FAA rule waiver will make it easier for airlines to cancel flights at O’Hare, other big airports

Federal regulators waived a rule Wednesday that was causing airlines to fly nearly empty planes just to avoid losing takeoff and landing rights at major airports.

The Federal Aviation Administration said it would suspend the rule through May 31 to help airlines that are canceling flights because of the new virus outbreak.

The FAA assigns takeoff and landing rights, or "slots," at a few big, congested airports. Airlines must use 80% of their highly coveted slots or risk forfeiting them.

That FAA requirement — and especially a similar rule in Europe — led airlines to operate flights using those slots even if there were very few passengers.

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The FAA's decision affects flights at John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports in New York and Reagan Washington National Airport outside Washington, D.C.

The FAA said it also would not punish airlines that cancel flights through May 31 at four other airports where the agency approves schedules: Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey; Los Angeles International Airport and San Francisco International Airport.