Travelers pushing their luggage through a baggage claim inside the United Airlines terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) during the holiday season because of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) variant Omicron at risk of increasing cases sick in Los Angeles, California, USA on December 22, 2021.
Bing Guan | Reuters
Airlines canceled more than 2,400 US flights on New Year’s Day as they faced severe weather across the country and a surge in omicron infections among staff that disrupted air travel fly during the year-end holidays.
Since Christmas Eve, airlines have canceled more than 12,000 flights to the US and were forced to delay thousands more, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.
The travel woes come during what airlines expect to be some of their busiest since the pandemic began. Last year, the Transportation Security Administration screened nearly 580 million people, up 79 percent from 2020 but still down about 30 percent from pre-pandemic 2019 levels.
Southwest Airlines The majority escaped some of the severe disruptions affecting rivals over the holidays, but scrapped 472 flights on Saturday, representing 13% of the airline’s schedule, according to FlightAware. The airline suspended operations at Chicago’s airports at 1 p.m. local time ahead of a severe winter storm.
The airline has more than 200 departures daily from Chicago Midway International Airport. An airline spokeswoman said that the flights were cut because planners “anticipated the strong winds and blowing snow that our decades of history at this airport show us.” would slow down the airspace and also make it very difficult to test flights and get the plane back into the air.” A Southwest spokesperson said there were no personnel issues.
While the weather causes many New Year’s Day cancellations, service providers include United Airlines, Delta Airlines and JetBlue Airways canceled hundreds of flights over the holidays, citing omicron infections causing many disruptions.
Airlines have stepped up incentives for pilots and flight attendants to take flights and ease staffing shortages that some executives say could last for a few more weeks as Covid cases continue continue to increase.
Airline Pilots Association, United Pilots Association, negotiated triple pay CNBC reported on Friday. Flight attendants at United and both flight attendants and pilots at Morale and others also get paid extra during the busy holiday season.
The Federal Aviation Administration earlier this week also said disruptions are likely to continue.
The agency said in a statement on Friday: “Dense seasonal weather and traffic may result in some travel delays in the coming days. “Like the rest of the US population, an increasing number of FAA employees are testing positive for COVID-19. To maintain safety, traffic at some facilities may be reduced, This can lead to delays during busy times.”
Airlines have tried to cancel flights ahead of time so customers don’t get stuck at airports, crowding ticket counters and scrambling to change plans. JetBlue Airways this week said it will cut 1,280 flights from its schedule until mid-January to avoid last-minute cancellations because of omicron Covid infection fringe groups.
American Airlines, which operates a large hub off Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, canceled 205 flights, or 7% of its operations on Saturday, FlightAware data showed. Chicago-based United canceled 153.7% of their mainline flights.
