As of Saturday night, nearly 650 flights in the United States had been canceled and more than 5,200 flights into, into or out of the country had been delayed, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware. While the number of troubled flights was higher than on a typical travel day, travel demand was also higher. According to the Transportation Security Administration, the number of travelers over the July 4 holiday weekend had reached pre-pandemic levels. Travel demand on the same holiday weekend last year had rebounded significantly from pandemic lows, but was still below this year’s levels. FlightAware data showed that the three airports in the United States hit hardest by cancellations and delays Saturday were Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Kennedy Airport and New York-area Newark Liberty International Airport. The number of canceled and delayed flights was well below the levels of past Christmas and New Year holidays, when bad weather and Omicron-related staff shortages wreaked havoc with airline routes. But airlines are struggling to keep up with demand this Fourth of July holiday as they struggle with pilot shortages, weather and air traffic control delays. “Delta teams continue to safely manage the complex factors of adverse weather and air traffic control delays, which impact available flight crew duty time,” a Delta Air Lines spokesperson said in an email. “Canceling a flight 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. The stress at American Airlines was a computer error in the pilot travel transaction system that, the airline said, allowed some travel transactions that “should not have been allowed.” However, American said it “did not anticipate any operational impact due to this issue” and added that the “primary drivers of delays/cancellations” on Saturday were “weather and traffic control issues.” The Federal Aviation Administration said the main cause of flight delays and cancellations was weather followed by travel demand. The agency added in a statement: “The FAA has acted on the issues raised by airlines and is working with them to share information to keep aircraft moving safely when weather and other airspace events limit capacity. The agency has also added alternate routes and placed more controllers in high-demand areas and increased data sharing.”
