Airlines have canceled more than 3,500 U.S. flights this weekend and postponed thousands more, citing weather in Florida and other problems.
FlightAware, a website that tracks flights, noted major disruptions at several Florida airports, including in Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa, and Orlando, as well as Baltimore, New York, and other airports in almost the country.
JetBlue, Southwest, Alaska Airlines, Frontier, Spirit, and American Airlines were most affected, according to FlightAware, with JetBlue and Spirit canceling one-third of Sunday’s scheduled flights.
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Local news reported storms in Florida on Saturday. Several airlines told Sunday that operations are returning to regular. The spate of cancellations came as air travel is rebounding from the pandemic, with a strong need for spring-break flights. People on social media complained about waiting on hold or in lines for hours to get their canceled flights rescheduled and being stranded for days.
Severe weather in the Southeast and multiple air traffic control hold programs have created significant impacts on the industry,” a JetBlue spokesperson told in an email. “Today’s cancellations will support us reset our operation and safely carry our crews and aircraft back into position.”
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines also cited “weather and airspace congestion” Saturday in Florida, as well as a “technology issue.” It canceled about 1,000 flights over the weekend but told that as of 1 p.m. Eastern, it had no more cancellations on Sunday.
American told Florida weather Saturday affected its operations, and it was recovering today. Alaska Airlines seemed to be dealing with a separate problem.
The airline told Sunday that weekend flight cancellations that began Friday have affected more than 37,000 customers and, further revocations were likely.
The airline declined to say why it revoked flights but referred in its statement to contract negotiations with its pilots. Off-duty pilots picketed in several U.S. cities Friday over stalled negotiations.
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They have been without a new contract for three years.“Alaska Airlines failed to properly plan for increased travel demand and take the steps necessary to assure it attracted and retained pilots,” the pilots union told in a Friday press release
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