Thousands of flights were canceled or delayed in the United States over the weekend as a result of inclement weather and personnel shortages, adding to customers’ aggravation.
According to FlightAware statistics, almost 7,000 domestic flights were delayed and another 650 were canceled on Saturday. According to the flight monitoring website, an additional 8,100 flights were delayed and 950 were canceled on Sunday. The tarmac chaos continued Monday, with over 500 planes canceled and 2,800 delayed by mid-afternoon.
The airport congestion affects all sorts of passengers, including professional sports. Nneka Ogwumike, a WNBA player, tweeted on Monday that her team’s weekend travel had been delayed three times. Ogwumike and her Los Angeles Sparks colleagues waited for hours, expecting the jet would return on time, but it did not.
“I’ve never had to sleep at an airport in my 11 seasons,” she added, adding that her team’s trip was finally canceled. “It was just a matter of time until it happened. So half of us are sleeping at the airport, and the other half are staying in a hotel since there aren’t enough rooms.”
Everything for the first time @WNBA pic.twitter.com/w3PSHxCcJk
August 8, 2022 — Nneka Ogwumike (@nnekaogwumike)
Sabrina Amorim, a Virginia-based animal scientist, expressed her displeasure with Delta Air Lines in a tweet on Sunday, citing flight delays, cancellations, and lengthy wait times to talk with customer care employees.
@Delta This is really ridiculous! Flight delays, flight cancellations, and this massive queue from the airport’s lone customer service.
We’ve been waiting for hours with no results! pic.twitter.com/W1cflDif0G
August 7, 2022 — Sabrina Amorim (@amorimsab)
Among the problems that have marred the summer travel season, one possible bright light for customers is faster reimbursements. The United States Department of Transportation has proposed a new regulation under which customers who purchased by credit card and whose flight was delayed by three hours for a domestic trip or six hours for an international aircraft might get a refund within seven days. Before completing the regulation, agency officials will accept public comments for 90 days.
The slew of delays and cancellations may be attributed in part to the recent bad weather. Most of New Mexico, as well as parts of Arizona and Colorado, had thunderstorms on Saturday, while the Chicago area and most of the Midwest experienced severe rain and flash floods on Sunday.
Thunderstorms are expected to disrupt flights in Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, New York, Orlando, and Tampa on Monday, according to the FAA.
Airlines are forced to postpone flights until the weather clears. Commercial flight crews may not fly more than 8 hours a day with one pilot or 10 hours with two pilots, according to federal law. Airline employees must also rest for at least 10 hours prior to a trip. Longer delays may necessitate passengers waiting for a new crew to staff the aircraft.
Many airlines are also suffering from a lack of personnel, notably pilots.
“There is a pilot scarcity at small airlines because mainline carriers (including American, Delta, and United) employ from regionals,” Derek Kerr, American Airlines’ chief finance officer, told the Associated Press.
Meanwhile, he continued, major airlines are unable to educate new pilots rapidly enough.