I’m Writing From an American Airlines Flight I Thought Would Cancel — Here’s Data on What FAA Flight Cuts Look Like Today

Comments

1. Makes sense to cancel RJ flights, fewer passenger to reaccommodate but you may be at a small airport like SFE or YUM and there’s only 2-3 flights a day to a single or two hubs. Right now sitting in the AA FL at MIA. My plane just landed at and is coming from LGA and LGA is showing 15 minute departure delays. I have a connection this evening in DFW.

   Best advice, know your options. Get to the airport early, particularly if you have an airline lounge membership. Find out the path of your plane and monitor it. Be ready to jump if you need to. Don’t wait until you’re at the gate and it’s all turned to fecal matter.

2. Do you know if the duty to cancel flights into these major airports falls exclusively on US-based carriers? I would think that Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways, etc, would not be in the first round of cancellations, but I’m not sure.

3. They should cancel all flights from DCA and IAD to NYC and ORD. Make em drive!

4. Gary, thank you for the consolidated list.

   I think it’s important to remember that Bryan Bedford is running the FAA and he knows extremely well how the airlines work. Gary has an outstanding point – 70 days with more disruption in the year already. This exercise, with advance notice and benefit of planning I think in reality makes for a very good media doomsday piece without, in reality, really inconveniencing that many people and in a way making remaining operations more stable with crews (already being paid this close in) available for reassignment where contracts allow, hot spares, etc.

   Loads probably fairly light anyway. Heck, I was supposed to travel today through Monday on 7 UA/AA flights (and an AA bus) but am not feeling well so postponing anyway, but except for a EWR-ORD on UA, my upgrades cleared at the window on everything. Not that I cared as I had an exit row to myself on most flights anyway.

   CNN is set up a DCA showing the “floods of people dealing with widespread cancelations.” If you look at the data, that just isn’t happening. The pain is spread pretty evenly. This is maximum chest thumping and hand wringing over minimal actual customer impact, in my view.

5. International flights operating by US carriers and foreign carriers are exempt although international flights could be cancelled anyway for other reasons

   The DOJ is providing antitrust immunity so that US airlines can discuss which flights to cancel.

6. We checked in for our flight tomorrow PBI-ATL-RDU. DL says in a banner on the check-in page that it has cancelled the necessary flights for both Friday and Saturday, and informed passengers.

   @Raphael Solomon: FAA says international flights (both domestically and foreign operated) are exempt – for now.

7. None of this is necessary. It’s all a manufactured crisis because Republicans have so far chosen to hold the country hostage by not earning Senate Democrats votes on a bi-partisan budget. They could end this today. Safe travels.

8. Thanks for sharing the detailed data Gary

9. Thanks for the list, Gary — I was just searching for a consolidated one to see if there was a pattern. Reddit map is helpful too.

   Good luck @George Romey @NedsKid (and feel better) @Retired Lawyer etc. You too @1990 if you haven’t reached your final destination. I have 5 flights scheduled next week, let’s see how it goes!

   @Tim Dunn — very interesting tidbit on the antitrust immunity.

   Safe travels everyone

10. as is typical of this corrupt administration, they would rather disrupt air travel and 100’s of thousands of citizens, than actually try coming to the table to negotiate, all while protecting an already convicted felon from the Epsein files.

11. I think it’s important to remember that Bryan Bedford is running the FAA and he knows extremely well how the airlines work. Gary has an outstanding point – 70 days with more disruption in the year already. This exercise, with advance notice and benefit of planning I think in reality makes for a very good media doomsday piece without, in reality, really inconveniencing that many people and in a way making remaining operations more stable with crews (already being paid this close in) available for reassignment where contracts allow, hot spares, etc.

    Yes, but what if the goal is to cause disruptions with the Holiday Season coming up? Especially if said disruptions can be blamed on the “Libs”?

12. The democrats are driving this country into a brick wall, they are willing to kill us all just to prevent trump from getting a win.

    End the democrat shutdown, they are terrorists.

    Airlines should ban all democrat politicians from being allowed to fly until they open up the government.

13. @Doug

    This shutdown is a democrat caused shutdown, it’s their fault.

14. @Denver Refugee

    well it is their fault, they refuse to vote on CR bill that would fund the government.

15. @ 1990 – The extent to which you can pretzel twist logic is really impressive. I certainly hope your profession isn’t a serious one because I for one certainly wouldn’t want you in charge of anything consequential in life. The Democrats are the ones holding a gun to the head of government funding, full stop. And I’d bet good money that you trashed Republicans full force when they pulled the same nonsense back in 2013.

16. Apart for all the political aspects and opinions about “blame” (hey, lack of real leadership on all sides, I’d say), I give kudos to Scott Kirby and the United Team for excellent communications this week about their process, status, and cancellations’ outcomes.

17. @Don B — Naw, Acela is far better and more reliable than driving or any of those 1-hour frequently delayed DCA-LGA/JFK ‘shuttle’ flights; ORD, still gotta fly.

18. @Mike Hunt — Pretzel Logic is literally my favorite Steely Dan song, so, that makes about as much sense as anything. *wink*

19. Gary – this info is great. Will you publish these lists every day? I know that’s a lot to ask, but for those of us who travel a lot and have upcoming travel, it’s very helpful

20. Thanks for some “real time” perspectives from the front lines.

21. I’ve got a TPA to home connecting flight on AA Tuesday. I’m hopeful. Fortunately, AA can get me home by connecting through CLT, DCA, DFW, LGA, MIA, ORD, and PHL All of those are on the list (unlike my homeport), but all have >1 n/s home. And, it is not like I have to be at work Wednesday.
    BTW, on the way out I took DL in F through ATL, with two ~80 minutes scheduled legs. Drinks offered during boarding, with a second round of drinks in the air. Two passes with snacks. And, when I turned down a beverage during boarding on one leg, the FA checked again after serving others just in case he missed me by mistake. [Please do not read this as pro or con any airline, just an observation it can/does get done right.]

22. @ Mike Hunt — The Republicans are 100% the party responsible for this. The Democarats should not cave to these evil people. I gather that you are fine with 400%+ increases in health insuarnce premiums for 60 year olds? THESE ARE REAL NUMBERS AND REAL PEOPLE. Yeah, if the increase was from $5 to $25, no biggie, but the increases are from $6,000 to $30,000. How dare citizens of the wealthiest country in the world be able to afford healthcare. The audacity! Let them eat cake.

23. When American Airlines cancels a flight that is actually operated on a luxury bus by The Landline Company, does the airline data analytics company Cirium count it as a flight to help meet the FAA flight-reduction mandate?

    The buses connect Philadelphia International Airport to five regional airports: Allentown/Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; Atlantic City, New Jersey; Trenton-Mercer, New Jersey; Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pennsylvania; and Wilmington, Delaware. There are also connections between Chicago O’Hare and Rockford, Illinois, and South Bend, Indiana.

24. @Gene – You’re conflating moral outrage with economic reality. Nobody is saying healthcare costs don’t matter. They do. What I’m saying is that pretending trillion-dollar spending and bureaucratic micromanagement will fix it is fantasy. Yes, premiums have skyrocketed for 60-year-olds. That’s not because of Republicans refusing to “care,” it’s because the Affordable Care Act distorted the insurance market. When you force insurers to cover everything for everyone at the same price, you eliminate competition and drive costs through the roof. That’s not cruelty, that’s basic economics.

    And no, refusing to pass a clean CR is not moral courage. It’s legislative blackmail by another name. Democrats can posture about compassion all they want, but shutting down the government doesn’t make healthcare cheaper. It just makes everything else worse. If you actually want lower premiums, you need more competition, transparent pricing, and innovation. Those are things the government tends to crush, not create. Compassion without competence isn’t virtue. It’s theater.