Those opting for flights this summer are facing disappointing news as airport chat announces one cancellation after another.
More than 8,000 flights in the United States were delayed on Sunday alone, in addition to nearly 1,000 canceled flights, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking website. Almost 2,700 flights have already been delayed and 537 canceled as of Monday afternoon.
According to the flight tracker, the airports with the highest number of delays and cancellations on Sunday were Chicago O’Hare International Airport, Newark Liberty International, Chicago Midway International Airport and Denver International Airport.
Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines topped the list for most cancellations and delays.
“We continue to work through a number of weather-related challenges across the country this weekend,” Southwest Airlines told CNN in a statement Saturday. “Our teams are working to get our customers to their destinations safely and as quickly as possible.”
But bad weather is not the only barrier facing the air transport industry.
Unhappy flight attendants and not enough pilots
Demand for air travel has increased, but the workforce was not quick enough to bounce back. This may interest you : TELUS International AI Data Solutions has opened a high-tech site in Ireland.
“It’s going to be a while before the pilot workforce is back to pre-COVID-19 levels,” U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told the Deseret News’ Kyle Dunphey, noting that in some cases demand is higher now than it was before. the pandemic.
“I don’t think this is going to be solved overnight,” Buttigieg said.
There was also a shortage of pilots before the pandemic, but now the situation has worsened. The profession requires a licence, which is expensive and time-consuming to obtain. Major airlines such as Frontier began recruiting from Australia, while Delta Airlines dropped its four-year degree requirement, per Fast Company.
On the other hand, flight attendants are exhausted when dealing with highly unpredictable schedules.
They are “maxed out, working the longest days we’ve had, with the shortest overnight rest periods we’ve had,” American flight attendant Allie Malis told CNN Travel.
Tips for air travelers
Are you worried about your flight? Here are some air travel tips to use this summer amid major delays, according to Today.com.
Protecting consumers
On Wednesday, Buttigieg proposed a new federal rule that would make it easier for passengers to get refunds if there are “substantial changes” to the itinerary. To see also : Netflix Greenlights Swedish Comedy ‘One More Time’ Starring Hedda Stiernstedt; Red Arrow Rental; ” Marie Antoinette ” ; Thomas from All3Media International – Global Briefings.
“When Americans buy an airline ticket, they should get to their destination safely, reliably and affordably,” Buttigieg said of the proposed regulation in a statement. “This new proposed rule will protect travelers’ rights and help ensure they get the timely refunds they deserve from airlines.”
According to Condé Nast Traveler, “significant changes” include “changes that affect departure and/or arrival times by three hours or more for domestic flights and six hours or more for international flights; changes in the arrival or departure airports; changes that increase the number of connections in the flight; and changes in the type of flight if this causes a significant downgrade for the customer.”
Airlines have previously been required to refund customers for “substantial changes”, but the term was never fully defined.
