Air travel will return to normal by Wednesday, DOT Sec. Sean Duffy says
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the Federal Aviation Administration needs two more days to fully recover from the severe flight disruptions experienced over the weekend due to the severe winter storm that devastated the country.
In an interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Monday, Duffy said the FAA is targeting Wednesday as the day it hopes flights will return to normal.
“This storm is unique,” Duffy said. “You get the ice, you get the snow, and then on top of that there’s a cold front that follows it. That’s made it more difficult to navigate the ice for the last three days.”
Sunday was the biggest day of flight cancellations since the beginning of 2020, when the Covid epidemic emerged. Airlines canceled more than 15,000 U.S. flights over the weekend as much of the country was covered in snow and ice, according to flight tracking site FlightAware.
Duffy said the “major disruption” continued Monday, with more than 4,000 flight cancellations and nearly 10,000 delays during the day as the U.S. Department of Transportation dealt with the effects of the storm. Duffy added that these disruptions occurred because the FAA was focusing on salting and cleaning runways while dealing with fewer staff because commutes were difficult for workers.
“We will have more capacity when we get back to a full operating schedule,” Duffy said. “So you’re going to expect more full planes, more full flights as people fly this week as they head to their destinations. But again, Wednesday is our target date to get back to normal.”
Airlines routinely cancel flights ahead of a major storm to ensure planes, passengers and crew are not stranded; This could make disruptions worse once the severe weather subsides. January was low season for travel, but severe winter storms were affecting the travel of hundreds of thousands of people.
Multiple air carriers included American Airlines, Delta Airlines, JetBlue Airlines, Southwest Airlines And United AirlinesHe said they are waiving cancellation fees so customers can rebook.
The winter storm cancellations come just weeks after parts of Caribbean airspace were closed following U.S. strikes in Venezuela.
— CNBC’s Leslie Josephs contributed to this report.
