Worst winter in a decade as tens of thousands of US flights cancelled
Airlines have cancelled tens of thousands of US flights this winter, and imposed even more delays, resulting in the worst chaos in more than a decade and straining a country dependent on planes for long-distance trips. The latest disruptions came on Wednesday when a computer glitch at the US FAA grounded planes across the nation for two hours. More than 10,000 flights were cancelled or delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. This followed widespread problems triggered by a winter storm at Christmas. Several US carriers suffered delays while Southwest Airlines, a low-cost carrier, left some travellers stranded for days. During the holiday season between December 20 and January 4, US air travellers endured the most flight cancellations and delays in a decade, according to data from FlightAware. The more than 32,000 cancelled flights exceeded the previous high by over 50%. The cancellations amounted to about 8% of flights in the period, while 37% were delayed, according to FlightAware’s data. On average, only 2% of flights were cancelled between 2011 and 2021, while 22% were delayed. “It definitely is a most unusual start to the winter travel season,” said Dan Akins, an economist at consultancy Flightpath Economics. “It suggests how fragile is the system that we rely on as a utility, from a private company perspective to the public oversight of the FAA.” Airlines have cancelled tens of thousands of US flights this winter, and imposed even more delays, resulting in the worst chaos in more than a decade and straining a country dependent on planes for long-distance trips. The latest disruptions came on Wednesday when a computer glitch at the US Federal Aviation Administration grounded planes across the nation for two hours. More than 10,000 flights were cancelled or delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. This followed widespread problems triggered by a winter storm at Christmas. Several US carriers suffered delays while Southwest Airlines, a low-cost carrier, left some travellers stranded for days.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2023-01-13/general/worst-winter-in-a-decade-as-tens-of-thousands-of-us-flights-cancelled
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Worst winter in a decade as tens of thousands of US flights cancelled
Airlines have cancelled tens of thousands of US flights this winter, and imposed even more delays, resulting in the worst chaos in more than a decade and straining a country dependent on planes for long-distance trips. The latest disruptions came on Wednesday when a computer glitch at the US FAA grounded planes across the nation for two hours. More than 10,000 flights were cancelled or delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. This followed widespread problems triggered by a winter storm at Christmas. Several US carriers suffered delays while Southwest Airlines, a low-cost carrier, left some travellers stranded for days. During the holiday season between December 20 and January 4, US air travellers endured the most flight cancellations and delays in a decade, according to data from FlightAware. The more than 32,000 cancelled flights exceeded the previous high by over 50%. The cancellations amounted to about 8% of flights in the period, while 37% were delayed, according to FlightAware’s data. On average, only 2% of flights were cancelled between 2011 and 2021, while 22% were delayed. “It definitely is a most unusual start to the winter travel season,” said Dan Akins, an economist at consultancy Flightpath Economics. “It suggests how fragile is the system that we rely on as a utility, from a private company perspective to the public oversight of the FAA.” Airlines have cancelled tens of thousands of US flights this winter, and imposed even more delays, resulting in the worst chaos in more than a decade and straining a country dependent on planes for long-distance trips. The latest disruptions came on Wednesday when a computer glitch at the US Federal Aviation Administration grounded planes across the nation for two hours. More than 10,000 flights were cancelled or delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. This followed widespread problems triggered by a winter storm at Christmas. Several US carriers suffered delays while Southwest Airlines, a low-cost carrier, left some travellers stranded for days.<br/>
