Travelers across the country faced the prospect of canceled or delayed flights on Saturday as airlines and airports faced a combination of high demand, bad weather and staff shortages.
As of late Saturday afternoon, more than 600 flights in the United States had been canceled and nearly 4,400 flights within, into or out of the country were delayed, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.
Although the number of troubled flights was higher than on a typical travel day, travel demand was also higher. According to the Transportation Security Administration, ridership over the Fourth of July holiday weekend has reached pre-pandemic levels. Travel demand during the same holiday weekend last year rebounded significantly from pandemic lows, but was still below this year’s levels.
FlightAware data shows that the three United States airports most affected by cancellations and delays on Saturday were Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Chicago O’Hare International Airport and North Carolina’s Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
The number of canceled and delayed flights was well below the levels over the past Christmas and New Year holidays, when bad weather and Omicron-related staff shortages wreaked havoc on airline schedules.
Still, airlines are struggling to keep up with demand for the July 4th holiday as they grapple with pilot shortages, weather conditions and air traffic control delays.
“Delta crews continue to navigate safely through the combined factors of inclement weather and air traffic control delays impacting available crew duty time,” a Delta Air Lines spokesperson said in an email. “Flight cancellation is always our last resort and we sincerely apologize to our customers for any disruption to their travel plans.”
Delta said it is offering customers the option to reschedule flights from July 1 to July 4 without a fare change if they are traveling between the same origin and destination.
United Airlines also blamed weather and air traffic control programs for its delays.
Adding to the stress at American Airlines was a computer problem in its pilot travel trading system that, the airline said, allowed travel trading that “should not have been allowed.” But American said it does not “anticipate any operational impact due to this issue” and added that the “primary reasons for the delays/cancellations” on Saturday were “weather and traffic control issues.”
The Federal Aviation Administration said weather conditions were the main cause of flight delays and cancellations, followed by travel demand. The agency added in a statement: “The FAA is acting on issues raised by airlines and working with them to share information to keep aircraft moving safely when weather and other airspace events limit capacity.” The agency also added alternate routes and put more controllers in high-demand areas and increased data sharing.
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