United, Delta Cancel More Than 200 Flights On Friday Due To COVID-Related Staffing Issues

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Two prominent airlines have announced the cancellation of flights due to the ongoing COVID-19 case surge.

United Airlines and Delta Air Lines said well over flights are canceled on Friday, Christmas Eve, due to staffing shortages stemming from the Omicron variant.

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United said the rise in positive COVID cases and close contact exposures resulted in high numbers of employees making sick calls. That led the airline to call off 138 flights.

“The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation. As a result, we’ve, unfortunately, had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport. We’re sorry for the disruption and are working hard to rebook as many people as possible and get them on their way for the holidays.”

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Citing similar problems, Delta Air Lines canceled 92 flights.

“Delta teams have exhausted all options and resources — including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying — before canceling around 90 flights for Friday. We apologize to our customers for the delay in their holiday travel plans. Delta people are working hard to get them to where they need to be as quickly and as safely as possible on the next available flight.”