The omicron variant continues to stifle travel plans as the holiday season moves forward. Flight Aware reports that 1,011 flights into, out of or within the U.S. were canceled on Monday. In addition, more than 2,400 flights were delayed on Monday. Globally, Flight Aware recorded nearly 7,700 delays and over 2,500 canceled trips to start the week.
While it is hard to believe, Monday’s numbers were a slight improvement from Sunday. The Hill reports that more than 7,000 flights into, out of or within the U.S. were canceled or delayed on Sunday.
As the omicron variant continues to impact everyday life, airlines continue to report that many of their employers have had to call out sick after testing positive for the virus. As a result, American Airlines, Delta, SkyWest and United have all had to issue statements addressing the number of cancellations during the holiday season.
“A number of COVID-related sick calls led us to make the difficult decision to precancel some flights scheduled for today,” a spokesperson for American Airlines told The Hill on Sunday.
“The nationwide spike in omicron cases has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation. As a result, we’ve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport,” a spokesperson for Untied added.
Adding on, airlines are reporting that a number of flights have also been delayed due to poor winter weather. Colder temperatures, wind and snow have hit Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and the Salt Lake City International Airport among other airports.
