On Friday, I wrote a post asking: Is JetBlue Playing an April Fools’ Joke or is This a Glitch? I followed up with a post yesterday when I saw multiple U.S. airlines had tons of delays and cancelations and for different reasons. Well, if you thought yesterday was bad, wait until you look at the numbers today.
Sundays are the busiest day of the week to travel and thanks to COVID-19 restrictions easing, cases going down and Spring Break, people are really getting out there. The airlines were not prepared for the huge surge of travelers.
The number of people screened at the airport checkpoint by the TSA yesterday was more than one million. Three years ago on the same day, that number was over two million. That shows the travel industry is almost back to normal, without business travel and a lot of foreign travelers.
The total number of flights that have been canceled in the United States today is 1,301. You can expect delays to grow.
The first flight of the day is the most likely to be delayed.
Southwest Airlines has 386 canceled flights and 516 delayed flights. Southwest apologized for their operational issues, which they blamed on a tech upgrade and weather in Florida.
There were 272 canceled and 212 delayed at JetBlue. American Airlines had 213 canceled and108 delayed, followed by Spirit with 188 and 83. The three airlines have a strong presence in Florida, which has hadThunderstorms, which in turn throws a wrench into every airline's operations. We've seen a lot more than weather from JetBlue. Staffing issues are involved.
They're losing customers because you can't even get a hold of them. One of them is my sister who has had her flight delayed, canceled, and put on different flights to nearby airports instead of the one she paid more for to be closer to her house, and she can't even get through to change it. She spent five hours in the airport and wasn't given a hotel or taxi voucher. She received a $50 travel credit from JetBlue, which is less than what she paid for her ride.
My sister was not the only one as I have had tons of emails and comments on my website and on Facebook with similar experiences.
Tara wrote that the DCA-RSW flight was canceled and that they were rebooked on an April 3 flight. This is how you lose customers when other airlines are flying.
Alice had the same experience with Jet Blue. We canceled our flight to Westchester with no reason. If you want to speak to a rep, hold the time at 298 minutes. I can't rebook online. I think we are done with the airline.
It isn't just JetBlue.
The 17-year old nephew arrived in Miami FL at 1:30pm yesterday. The connection flight was delayed and then canceled. He had to wait in line for 5 hours to get a boarding pass after American canceled his flight.
David S asked JohnnyJet what was going on with Southwest flights out of Miami. Friends can't leave today. They were told of weather and technical problems for the next two days.
If you are traveling to or from Florida today or tomorrow, you need to be prepared for a long day at the airport. If your flight is delayed or canceled, I recommend not checking a bag since baggage handlers can't go outside to get the bags if there is lightning.
Today’s weather may cause flights/baggage delivery delays throughout the day. ⛈️ Please make sure to check with your airline directly for any updates in regards to their ops. For general airport delays across the US, visit: https://t.co/JKuNBVb9Fl https://t.co/LLkJMV9AtY
— Orlando International Airport (@MCO) April 2, 2022
Don't take out your problems with the airline crew or airport staff, no matter what you do. A friend of mine is a flight attendant.
MimiMM_ said, "Wooooo." There were a lot of airline complaints tonight. Passengers and crew. Crew members in extended duty periods sleep on airport floors with no immediate hotel rooms because of last minute cancellation.
Wooooo. Lots of airline complaints on my timeline tonight. Passengers AND crew members. Passengers inconvenienced by last minute cancellations…and crew members in EXTENDED duty periods, sleeping on airport floors with no immediate hotel rooms.
— Mimi M (@MimiMM_) April 3, 2022
There is a comment on my Facebook account from Carlos S., who works in the industry.
I work in the airline industry. I wish we could do more. 99% of the time it's not our fault. Employees are trying to get better wages and benefits from their employers. We want everyone to get to their destination, we really do. We were not prepared for the end of the Pandemic. We are seeing more numbers than ever before. Even before the outbreak. No airlines were prepared for this. Employees are tired. I work 32 hours in 2 days. We are trying. Hope everyone understands that we apologize in advance. We are trying. A tired customer service agent!
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