By The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Major U.S. airports are among those facing 10% reductions in air traffic Friday due to the government shutdown.

A list distributed to airlines and obtained by The Associated Press includes airports in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles among the 40 that will see flights slashed.

The Federal Aviation Administration is imposing the reductions to take pressure off air traffic controllers, who are federal employees and have gone without pay during the shutdown.

In addition to reduced flight traffic, the shutdown has led to more flight delays, with experts advising travelers to check flight statuses before heading to the airport, among other tips.

Here’s a closer look at what to know about the reductions.

Which airports are affected?

The list includes 40 airports with Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Miami, Newark and San Francisco among them. A full list of airports facing reductions is here.

Why is this necessary?

Air traffic controllers have gone without paychecks during the shutdown of the federal government. That’s led to controllers calling in sick and contributed to staffing shortages that have been affecting air travel for weeks.

Most controllers work mandatory overtime six days a week during the shutdown without pay, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association has said.

That leaves little time for a side job unless controllers call in sick to the FAA.

When will the reductions begin and end?

They’re set to start Friday, with passengers expected to be notified on Thursday. Airlines have said people could see weekend travel plans disrupted with little notice.

It’s unclear when the reduced flights could end. Airlines, unions and the travel industry have urged Congress to end the shutdown, which on Wednesday became the longest on record.

What will the effect of the reduction be?

The cuts could include up to 1,800 flights and about 268,000 seats combined, according to one estimate.

United Airlines and Delta Air Lines both said they would offer refunds to travelers who opt not to fly, even if they have tickets that aren’t normally refundable.

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

Has this happened before?

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said this week that he’s never seen these kinds of measures taken before in his nearly four-decade experience in the aviation field.

“We’re in new territory in terms of government shutdowns,” he said.

Staffing problems led to delays throughout October, but they were mostly isolated and temporary. Last weekend, though, saw a change.

From Friday to Sunday evening, at least 39 air traffic control facilities reported potential staffing limits, according to an Associated Press analysis of operations plans shared through the Air Traffic Control System Command Center system. The figure, which is likely an undercount, is well above the average for weekends before the shutdown.

During weekends from Jan. 1 to Sept. 30, the average number of airport towers, regional control centers and facilities monitoring traffic at higher altitudes that announced potential staffing issues was 8.3, according to the AP analysis.

List of airports impacted by government shutdown

1. Anchorage International in Alaska

2. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International in Georgia

3. Boston Logan International in Massachusetts

4. Baltimore/Washington International in Maryland

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5. Charlotte Douglas International in North Carolina

6. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International in Ohio

7. Dallas Love Field in Texas

8. Ronald Reagan Washington National in Virginia

9. Denver International in Colorado

10. Dallas/Fort Worth International in Texas

11. Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County in Michigan

12. Newark Liberty International in New Jersey

13. Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International in Florida

14. Honolulu International in Hawaii

15. Houston Hobby in Texas

16. Washington Dulles International in Virginia

17. George Bush Houston Intercontinental in Texas

18. Indianapolis International in Indiana

19. John F. Kennedy International in New York

20. Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas

21. Los Angeles International in California

22. LaGuardia Airport in New York

23. Orlando International in Florida

24. Chicago Midway International in Illinois

25. Memphis International in Tennessee

26. Miami International in Florida

27. Minneapolis/St Paul International in Minnesota

28. Oakland International in California

29. Ontario International in California

30. Chicago O`Hare International in Illinois

31. Portland International in Oregon

32. Philadelphia International in Pennsylvania

33. Phoenix Sky Harbor International in Arizona

34. San Diego International in California

35. Louisville International in Kentucky

36. Seattle/Tacoma International in Washington

37. San Francisco International in California

38. Salt Lake City International in Utah

39. Teterboro in New Jersey

40. Tampa International in Florida

Lakeville South assistant coach Kevin Boysen has presented Cougars players with small items prior to every postseason game this fall. Ahead of the Cougars’ section final victory over Lakeville North, it was a keychain with a target.

The reminder: As the defending state champions, you always have a target on your back.

Lakeville South outside hitter Jada Johnson (8) tries to block a shot by Roseville Area outside hitter Sam Bloomquist (1) during the Class 4A girls volleyball semifinals of the State Volleyball Tournament at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Thursday, Nov. 06, 2025. Lakeville South won in 3-0 sets. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

Lakeville South has seen the best that all comers have had to offer all season. The only way to combat it was for the Cougars to play their best game, as well. Don’t back down from a challenge — take it head on.

With its back against the wall in Thursday’s Class 4A state semifinal, Roseville delivered its best blow. Trailing 2-0 in the match and 11-6 in the third set, the Raiders went on a 15-6 run to seize control and move to within four points of forcing a fourth set.

During one of Lakeville South’s timeouts amid the Raiders’ run, Boysen noted the Cougars were in control, but that they had to “bring it all” to finish the match.

That’s what they did.

Lakeville South won eight of the set’s final nine points to complete the sweep. The Cougars will get a chance to defend their title in the championship bout at 7 p.m. Saturday in St. Paul.

“We knew all season we had to work hard,” junior setter Kaelyn Bjorklund said. “Our coaches held us very accountable to always be communicating, always have energy. Because it always comes down to practice. You practice how you’re going to play. Every tournament, every game, we’ve just always brought our best. We try to excel every game.”

The Cougars delivered again Thursday. Their execution was pristine and seemed to put Roseville on its heels. The Raiders entered the semifinal as winners of 13 straight matches, but they dropped the first set, 25-12. It wasn’t until the third set that Roseville (24-8) truly resembled the team it’s been all season.

“We are so tough and gritty, and I think to start off we were so well prepared and we had a mindset, and I just think we lost a little bit of our special sauce, our oomph that makes us who we are,” Roseville coach Greg Ueland said. “We talk about responding all the time, and it just took us so long to respond.

“And then when you’re in that situation, especially against an amazing team like Lakeville South, you have to work that much harder mentally, physically and emotionally. I think that took a big toll on us. But our absolute grit, that’s who we are. I knew they would stay fighting.”

Ueland noted the fourth-seeded Raiders had to “terminate” more balls to score Thursday against Lakeville South’s daunting defense. They did so by mixing up shots at the net and cranking up the energy another notch to win more of the relentless rallies Lakeville South claimed earlier in the match.

“All of us really wanted it so bad,” Raiders junior middle blocker Sophia Gholson-Johnson said, “so we had to push that little more.”

But Lakeville South (30-3) was ready for that, as well. The top-seeded Cougars cited “really hard” practices all season as what helped prepare them for such situations in high-pressure environments.

“Now that we’re here, the work finally paid off and it’s all worth it in the end,” senior right-side hitter Jada Johnson said. “I’m glad that they take it so seriously.”

Lakeville South’s Amanda Cullen (11) celebrates after defeating Roseville Area in 3-0 sets during the Class 4A girls volleyball semifinals of the State Volleyball Tournament at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Thursday, Nov. 06, 2025. (Craig Lassig / Special to the Pioneer Press)

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By MICHAEL PROBST and KIRSTEN GRIESHABER

HANAU, Germany (AP) — Police in Germany said Thursday they detained a 31-year-old man suspected of painting swastikas with his own blood on dozens of cars, some mailboxes and building facades in the central town of Hanau.

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Police spokesman Thomas Leipold said officers were alerted Wednesday night when a man reported that he noticed the shape of a swastika applied in a reddish liquid on the hood of a parked car. Police said that almost 50 cars had been defaced in a similar way.

A special test quickly revealed that the substance was human blood.

The display of Nazi emblems, including the swastika, is illegal in Germany.

On Thursday afternoon, police said, the man, a Romanian citizen whose name was not given in line with German privacy rules, was arrested at his home in Hanau, after they were tipped off by a witness.

“He was still under the strong influence of alcohol and his motive appears to be highly personal and job-related — he just snapped,” Leipold said. He added that the man had injuries that appeared to be self-inflicted.

“He is currently being examined at a psychiatric hospital,” Leipold said. He declined to give any further details in order to protect the privacy of the suspect.

The swastika is widely considered a symbol of hate that evokes the trauma of the Holocaust and the horrors of Nazi Germany. White supremacists, neo-Nazi groups and vandals have continued to use it after the end of World War II, to stoke fear and hate.

On Thursday morning, before the suspect was apprehended, the city’s Mayor Claus Kaminsky expressed shock.

Hanau was in the headlines five years ago when a German attacker shot and killed nine people with immigrant roots in a rampage at a hookah bar in the town, in one of the worst cases of domestic terrorism since World War II.

“Especially in our city, which was deeply affected by the racist attack on Feb. 19, 2020, such an act causes deep consternation,” he said, adding that the city had filed a criminal complaint, German news agency dpa reported.

“What happened here crosses every boundary of decency and humanity,” Kaminsky said. “Swastikas have no place in Hanau. We will not allow such symbols to sow fear or division.”

Grieshaber reported from Berlin.

By JOHN RABY and ERIK VERDUZCO, Associated Press

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — A jury in Virginia on Thursday awarded $10 million to a former teacher who was shot by a 6-year-old student and later accused an ex-administrator in a lawsuit of ignoring repeated warnings that the child had a gun.

The jury returned its decision against Ebony Parker, a former assistant principal at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News.

Abby Zwerner was shot in January 2023 as she sat at a reading table in her first-grade classroom. She had sought $40 million against Parker in the lawsuit.

Zwerner spent nearly two weeks in the hospital, required six surgeries and does not have the full use of her left hand. A bullet narrowly missed her heart and remains in her chest.

Parker was the only defendant in the lawsuit. A judge previously dismissed the district’s superintendent and the school principal as defendants.

The shooting sent shock waves through this military shipbuilding community and the country at large, with many wondering how a child so young could gain access to a gun and shoot his teacher.

The lawsuit said Parker had a duty to protect Zwerner and others from harm after being told about the gun. Zwerner’s attorneys said Parker failed to act in the hours before the shooting after several school staff members told her that the student had a gun in his backpack.

“Who would think a 6-year-old would bring a gun to school and shoot their teacher?” Zwerner’s attorney, Diane Toscano, told the jury. “It’s Dr. Parker’s job to believe that that is possible. It’s her job to investigate it and get to the very bottom of it.”

Parker did not testify in the lawsuit. Her attorney, Daniel Hogan, had warned jurors about hindsight bias and “Monday morning quarterbacking” in the shooting.

““You will be able to judge for yourself whether or not this was foreseeable,” Hogan said. “That’s the heart of this case.

“The law knows that it is fundamentally unfair to judge another person’s decisions based on stuff that came up after the fact. The law requires you to examine people’s decisions at the time they make them.”

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The shooting occurred on the first day after the student had returned from a suspension for slamming Zwerner’s phone two days earlier.

Zwerner testified she first heard about the gun prior to class recess from a reading specialist who had been tipped off by students. The shooting occurred a few hours later. Despite her injuries, Zwerner was able to hustle her students out of the classroom. She eventually passed out in the school office.

Zwerner testified she believed that she had died that day.

“I thought I was either on my way to heaven or in heaven,” Zwerner said. “But then it all got black. And so, I then thought I wasn’t going there. And then my next memory is I see two co-workers around me and I process that I’m hurt and they’re putting pressure on where I’m hurt.”

Zwerner no longer works for the school district and has said she has no plans to teach again. She has since become a licensed cosmetologist.

Parker faces a separate criminal trial this month on eight counts of felony child neglect. Each of the counts is punishable by up to five years in prison in the event of a conviction.

The student’s mother was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for felony child neglect and federal weapons charges. Her son told authorities he got his mother’s handgun by climbing onto a drawer to reach the top of a dresser, where the firearm was in his mom’s purse.

Raby reported from Cross Lanes, West Virginia.