U.S. airlines are facing a busy holiday weekend proceeded by nearly a week of disrupted travel, predominantly in the northeast region.
Delayed flights within, into, or out of the U.S. numbered over 43,000 between June 23-27, with cancellations above 6,500 during that span, according to FlightAware. New York-area airports are among the most impacted and disruptions continued June 28, with afternoon ground stops issued for Newark Liberty (EWR), LaGuardia (LGA) and Teterboro due to thunderstorms in the area.
In addition to severe weather, airlines have attributed the delays to air traffic control (ATC) staffing shortages. New York in particular faces low staffing levels with the Terminal Radar Approach Control facility N90 staffed at 54%, according to a recent U.S. Transportation Department Office of the Inspector General (OIG) audit. It is one of 20 “critical” facilities staffed below the U.S. FAA’s 85% threshold, OIG notes.
New York Kennedy (JFK)-based JetBlue Airways topped the list for total percentage of delayed flights among U.S. airlines June 24-27, ranging from 48-56% across that four-day period, according to the FlightAware data. The airline had cautioned in an April 25 earnings call it was “disproportionately exposed” to New York-area ATC staffing challenges.
“We are focused on what we can control, like protecting scheduled overnight maintenance time so the fleet can launch on time,” President and COO Joanna Geraghty said during the carrier’s first quarter results, noting ongoing technology investments to aid recovery during irregular operations, and planning with schedule buffers and elevated crew reserve levels.
In a statement to Aviation Daily on June 28, JetBlue said it was working to proactively cancel flights where possible, amid ATC flight restrictions and storms.
“Severe weather on the East Coast has led to lengthy FAA-required air traffic control (ATC) ground delay programs and ground stops now running multiple days in a row,” a spokesperson noted. “These programs have limited the number of flights allowed to take off and land at New York airports as well as our ability to receive clearance from ATC to use flight paths in the airspace around these airports.”
United: FAA ‘Failed Us’
Delays for United Airlines, which also operates a hub in the New York region, accounted for 27-44% of its scheduled flights June 24-27, with its cancellations peaking at 26%—or 783 flights—on June 27, according to FlightAware. CEO Scott Kirby in a memo to staff has attributed a large portion of weekend impacts to the FAA, stating that the agency “failed us.”
“The weather we saw in EWR is something that the FAA has historically been able to manage without a severe impact on our operations and customers. This past Saturday, however, was different,” he wrote on June 26. “The FAA reduced the arrival rates by 40% and the departure rates by 75%. That is almost certainly a reflection of understaffing/lower experience at the FAA. It led to massive delays, cancellations, diversions, as well as crews and aircraft out of position.”
Looking ahead, the carrier says it is preparing for the Fourth of July weekend, a holiday period projected by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to see record passenger volumes. Peaking on Friday June 30 with an estimated 2.82 million travelers, TSA expects approximately 17.7 million passengers for the entire seven-day travel period June 29-July 5.
“Several consecutive days of severe weather and lingering thunderstorms in the Northeast, combined with FAA staffing constraints over the weekend, have resulted in a tough operating environment, especially for our customers flying in and out of the New York area,” a United spokesperson said in a June 28 statement. “Our airport and call center teams are working overtime to assist them ... we’re also planning ahead to be ready for the upcoming holiday weekend.”
Delta Air Lines is also among the airlines experiencing delays and cancellations. Calling the last week “pretty sloppy” in the northeast during a June 27 Investor Day, CEO Ed Bastian said “we’re going to continue to build durability around weather.”
National Airspace System staffing was a contributing factor in more than 40,000 delays from JFK, LGA, and EWR in summer 2022, according to FAA, which has projected overall delays in the area to increase by 45% year-over-year. The agency says it is “taking several steps in New York to keep air travel this summer safe and smooth, even as we see strong domestic demand and a return of pre-pandemic international traffic” and “continues to reduce the air traffic controller training backlog.”
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