Air travelers came and went mostly without trouble at Denver International Airport on Friday, expressing gratitude for federal air traffic controllers working without pay, ready to adapt as flight reductions ordered by the Federal Aviation Administration kicked in.

But the impacts of the government shutdown at DIA and other major hubs across the country were raising questions about how much pain from the political impasse over health care costs will be foisted on millions of Americans planning holiday travel.

If the FAA jacks up flight reductions from the originally planned 10% to 20%, as U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy threatened on Friday, the travel disruption “would be felt by local economies, as well as passengers,” DIA chief executive Phil Washington said. “There

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