With travelers trying to head home at the end of the holiday season, airlines had canceled more than 2,500 flights in the United States by Sunday evening, some caused by New Year’s Day snowstorms in Chicago and Denver, two of the country’s major flight hubs.
At 10 p.m. Sunday, the number of cancellations stood at 2,659 nationwide and was slowly rising, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks commercial aviation. More than 2,700 flights were canceled Saturday.
At Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, 293 outbound flights had been canceled, or 27 percent of the total, and Chicago Midway International Airport lost 43 outbound flights, or 14 percent of its daily total. The number of outbound flight cancellations at the two airports, 336, was down from the 539 recorded Saturday.
Another 262 flights headed to O’Hare, and 22 into Midway, were scrubbed Sunday, according to FlightAware.
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Chicago saw about three inches of snowfall on New Year’s Day, which was a rarity, according to the Chicago Tribune. The Windy City has received more than one inch of snow on Jan. 1 only 12 times since 1872.
Share this articleShareIn the D.C. area, Reagan National Airport had counted 26 outbound cancellations so far Sunday, or 6 percent of its total planned flights. Baltimore-Washington International Marshall Airport saw 20 departing flights canceled, also 6 percent, and Dulles International Airport had 27 outbound flights canceled, or 5 percent of its planned total. For inbound flights, National reported 58 cancellations, Dulles 41 and BWI 32.
Officials at the Transportation Security Administration said Sunday that about 1,778 employees have active covid-19 infections and are staying home. However, the agency said it has the staffing it needs to cover current flight schedules and passenger volumes.
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The agency said that roughly 1.6 million people passed through airport checkpoints on Jan. 1 compared with roughly 1.2 million on the same day in 2021.
SkyWest Airlines, a regional carrier that operates shorter flights as Delta Connection, United Express and American Eagle, reported the highest number of cancellations — 568, or 23 percent of its total. Southwest Airlines, which flies heavily through Chicago, had grounded 429 flights, or 11 percent, by 10 p.m. Sunday.
JetBlue canceled 178 of its flights Sunday, 16 percent of its total. Delta, with 177 cancellations, American, with 160, and United, with 116, knocked about 5 percent of their flights from their schedules.
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