Washington — The Federal Aviation Administration said Sunday it is lifting all restrictions on commercial flights that were imposed at 40 major airports during the country's longest government shutdown.

Airlines can resume their regular flight schedules beginning Monday at 6 a.m. EST, the agency said.

Citing safety concerns as staffing shortages grew at air traffic control facilities during the shutdown, the FAA issued an unprecedented order to limit traffic in the skies. It had been in place since Nov. 7, affecting thousands of flights across the country.

Detroit Metro Airport was among the airports affected by flight cutbacks in recent weeks because of the federal government shutdown.

Impacted airports included large hubs in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Atlanta.

The flight

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