Chicago: United Airlines and Delta Air Line on Thursday said their respective canceled dozens of Christmas eve flights, because the omicron variant spread Covid-19 requires victims on flight crew and other workers.
United based in Chicago canceled 120 flights for Friday, while Delta based in Atlanta said it had canceled around 90.
Both of them said they were working to contact passengers so they would not be stranded at the airport.
“The national surge in omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crew and the people who carry out our operations.
As a result, we unfortunately have to cancel several flights and notify the previous affected customers from them to come.
Airport,” said United.
Delta says it has “exhausted all options and resources – including routes and replacing aircraft and crew to cover scheduled flying – before canceling around 90 flights for Friday.” Delta quoted the potential for bad weather and the impact of the omicron variant for cancellation.
On Tuesday, Delta Ed Bastian’s chief executive asked the US head for the control and prevention of disease (CDC) to shrink quarantine guidelines for individuals who were fully vaccinated which experienced a breakthrough of Covid-19 infection, citing impacts on labor.
Bastian asked that the isolation period was cut into five days from now on 10.
The request echoed by both airlines to America, the trade group representing the main cargo and passenger operators, who wrote to the CDC on Thursday, and by JetBlue on Wednesday.
CDC released updated quarantine guidance for health workers on Thursday, cutting isolation time for seven days for workers who tested positive Covid-19 but not symptoms, provided they tested negatively.