But in Alaska, where more than 80% of the state’s communities aren’t connected to the road system at all, EAS is a lifeline. In remote places like King Salmon, Unalakleet, or Cold Bay, the same bush planes that ferry residents to hub airports for work, travel, and medical appointments also deliver groceries, medicine, and mail to rural towns. “While the program is specifically for passenger air service, passenger flights routinely carry invaluable freight to and from communities,” explains Will Day, executive director of the Alaska Air Carriers Association.
That means an interruption in service wouldn’t just inconvenience travelers—it would effectively isolate entire communities. As Alaska senator Lisa Murkowski said in a press release: “The critical assistance these routes provide makes a disruption on any scale detrimental to these communities, and the local air carriers serving them.”
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An uncertain future—even after the shutdown ends
Travelers with tickets booked through early November shouldn’t see flight disruptions on subsidized routes. Airlines operating under EAS contracts have been instructed to continue service, and airports are proceeding as if operations will continue as planned, while carriers like Cape Air, Contour, Denver Air Connection, and Ravn Alaska are maintaining normal schedules.
But if Congress fails to reach a broader funding deal by November 2, service could again be at risk. “Airlines can’t operate on maybe,” says Evan Oshan, an aviation attorney at Oshan & Associates. “They need planes, crews, and fuel commitments made weeks in advance. Every time Congress kicks this can down the road, carriers have to decide whether to keep flying routes that might not get paid.”
Even when the government does reopen, EAS may not survive in its current form. Congress appropriated nearly $500 million to fund EAS in 2024; it’s a rare example of a program that historically draws support from both parties, as it serves rural communities in nearly every region of the country. But earlier this year, President Donald Trump proposed cutting the program by $308 million in his discretionary budget request—after recommending during his first term that EAS be eliminated entirely.
In the coming months, lawmakers could vote on what the future of the program looks like. That could involve limiting its funds to communities without highway access—effectively shifting focus to Alaska and the most remote corners of the country—or continuing to subsidize flights to seasonal tourism hubs that rely on reliable air links to sustain their economies. As the government shutdown drags on, “the real victims are the small towns that built their economies around having reliable air service—only to find out it can vanish with two weeks’ notice,” Oshan says.