More than 3000 flights canceled worldwide as airlines cite COVID-19 staffing issues
By Sarakshi Rai - 12/24/21 09:19 AM EST
More than 3,000 flights scheduled for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day have been canceled globally, according to the website FlightAware.
Around 20 percent of those canceled for Friday involved travel within, into or out of the United States, FlightAware said.
So far, 4,604 flights have been delayed. About 500 flights are delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Friday.
United Airlines and Delta Air Lines said Thursday that they had canceled hundreds of Christmas Eve flights.
United Airlines confirmed that more than 100 flights that were scheduled for Christmas Eve have been canceled by the company as it grapples with the spread of the omicron variant.
A spokesperson for United said on Thursday that "we’re seeing about 120 cancellations planned for Friday."
"The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation," United said in a statement.
"As a result, we’ve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport. We’re sorry for the disruption and are working hard to rebook as many people as possible and get them on their way for the holidays,” United added.
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https://thehill.com/policy/transportation/aviation/587239-more-than-3000-flights-delayed-worldwide-as-airlines-cite
