Delta, Alaska cancels hundreds of flights due to bad weather, Omicron cases
/cloudfront-us-east-2.images.arcpublishing.com/reuters/OCEYI5SYE5JKBM7QEHDTZ56FCU.jpg)
Delta Air Lines jets are seen at the gates of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia, USA December 22, 2021. REUTERS / Elijah Nouvelage
Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com
Register
December 28 (Reuters) – US airlines Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) and Alaska Air Group (ALK.N) canceled hundreds of flights on Tuesday due to adverse weather conditions and increasing cases of the Omicron variant.
Delta said it expected to cancel more than 250 of 4,133 scheduled flights on Tuesday, while Alaska canceled 150 flights to and from Seattle and warned of more cancellations and delays during the day.
Total cancellations from kl. 14.00 ET inside, into or out of the US was 1034, with 2694 flights delayed, marking a fifth day of cancellations of flights.
Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com
Register
Delta said it was working to redirect and replace some aircraft.
Despite the ongoing disruption, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday that it was not currently considering recommending a vaccine mandate for domestic flights, and responded to a proposal the day before from Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s leading expert on infectious diseases. read more
“Right now we’re talking about ways to get people vaccinated. Absolutely domestic flights have been a topic of conversation, but that’s not something we’re looking at right now,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told National Public Radio when asked about Fauci’s comments. .
Walensky said that the CDC considers all potential policies and strongly recommends vaccinations, noting that unvaccinated people have a much higher chance of being admitted to COVID-19 hospitals.
US airlines also canceled more than 1,000 flights on Monday after putting thousands of planes on the ground over the Christmas holiday weekend as airlines struggled with staff shortages from COVID-19 infections and bad weather in parts of the country. read more
Snow in the Pacific Northwest on Monday contributed to the cancellation of more than 110 flights to land at Seattle-Tacoma Airport.
Rising infections that make pilots and cabin crew quarantine have also forced many cancellations of flights. read more
The average number of new COVID-19 cases in the United States has risen 55% to over 205,000 per day over the past seven days, according to a Reuters report.
The CDC said Monday that it shortens the recommended isolation period for infected Americans to five days from 10 days earlier, if they are asymptomatic. The move can help airlines and other businesses reduce staff shortages. read more
Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com
Register
Reporting of Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Chris Gallagher in Washington; Edited by Shinjini Ganguli and Richard Pullin
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.