Air travel this summer is volatile â here's how to hedge your bets
Air travel feels out of control lately, as if buying a plane ticket is a risky deal. Here are some ways to smooth out what can be a hectic transit.
LEARN MOREPosted: 8:18 a.m. EDT Jul 3, 2023
According to airline tracker FlightAware, nearly 24,000 flights in the U.S. were delayed from Friday through Sunday. Additionally, about 1,400 flights were canceled during the weekend.
According to FlightAware, Monday is starting out with relatively few anticipated cancellations and delays. The website listed 521 cancellations for Monday as of early morning.
The worst of the cancellations on Sunday came in the New York City region, with over half of flights leaving LaGuardia and Newark Liberty being delayed or canceled. The New York region had some strong thunderstorms in the early evening Sunday.
The disruptions to air travel come as the Transportation Security Administration projects the July Fourth weekend being the busiest for air travel since 2019. TSA expected to screen over 2.8 million passengers on Friday. From June 28 through July 5, TSA expected to process 17.7 million travelers.
United Airlines' performance appeared to improve after 45% of flights on the airline were postponed on Friday. By Sunday, that figure was down to 32%.
During a spate of delays on his airline, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby flew on a private jet from New Jersey to Denver. In a statement, Kirby said the move was "the wrong decision" and "insensitive to our customers who were waiting to get home." He promised to "better demonstrate my respect for the dedication of our team members and the loyalty of our customers."
United Airlines said passengers on flights heading to or leaving the Northeast could be eligible for travel waivers.
