Air travel hits snags. Which solutions will take off?

Several days of held-up holiday air travel, due to storms and logistics, have given way to slightly bluer skies this week. But the late-June tide of flight delays and cancellations has signaled the risk of more summer disruptions.

This is raising questions around responsibility and long-term solutions. That’s because the industry faces a confluence of weather-related uncertainties, surging demand from airline passengers, and challenges with labor supply and technology. The structural challenges won’t be quick to fix, experts say.  

“It’s going to take time to find lasting solutions to the problems that we have right now,” says Stephen West, director of the Air Traffic Collegiate Training Initiative at the University of Oklahoma.

Americans, meanwhile, are raring to jet – and experts expect demand to continue to soar. Following the official end of the COVID-19 public health emergency this spring, a record number of people – nearly 2.9 million individuals – were screened at airport checkpoints last Friday, surpassing a 2019 high. 

People are purchasing flights “albeit the prices are higher,” says Paula Twidale, senior vice president of travel at AAA. “Keep in mind, also, that they’ve saved a lot of money not traveling for a couple years.”

That demand collided with factors like storms in the Northeast and reports of staffing issues. In the week leading up to July 4, more than 47,000 flights were delayed and some 4,000 were canceled, according to FlightAware, an aviation intelligence company. While cancellations have dipped from 4.5% last Wednesday to around 2% yesterday, delayed arrivals still hover at about a quarter of scheduled flights.

Bad weather aside, last week the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), airlines, and unions took turns pointing fingers, leaving many frustrated flyers to problem-solve themselves. 

Among those inconvenienced was 16-year-old Tanish Chauhan. On June 28, he waited for news of his luggage at the Denver International Airport baggage claim.

“Exhausted,” he called himself, standing in a long line around midnight. 

Due to two canceled United Airlines flights, the high schooler, who was headed home from Seattle to Newark, New Jersey, ended up stranded solo in Denver. Hotels declined to book him as a minor, so his parents scrambled to find a family friend who hosted Tanish last-minute. He arrived home Friday, four days later than planned. His checked bag is still missing. 

Ways to improve

Weather is the leading cause of air travel disruptions, but the risks are being amplified currently by a tight supply of key personnel – and in some cases also by wobbly computer systems. The airline with the most cancellations in recent days, United, issued a July 1 letter signed by CEO Scott Kirby calling last week “one of the most operationally challenging weeks I’ve experienced in my entire career.” 

He cited a range of ways to improve, including updated crew scheduling technology. Other observers have called for equipment upgrades industrywide; faulty scheduling technology was one factor behind major disruptions at Southwest Airlines last year.

The United executive joined peers at other airlines casting blame on the FAA for reducing arrival and departure rates. The FAA, in turn, blamed the weather and said the agency had added new East Coast routes since the spring.

Still, the FAA has faced air traffic controller staffing shortages at critical facilities without a plan to solve the problem, posing “a risk to the continuity of air traffic operations,” an independent government audit found last month. The report also notes that the pandemic delayed controller training, which can take more than three years. 

That means increasing hiring and training of controllers is necessary, but that won’t pay off in the immediate future, says training director Mr. West, who is also a former air traffic controller.

It isn’t a simple problem to solve, in part because controllers aren’t easily interchangeable. These professionals “have to be trained for their individual piece of airspace,” he says, adding that staffing challenges around other roles like pilots must also be addressed. 

As one point of progress, however, the FAA has agreed with recommendations put forth by the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General. The agency also plans to increase its annual hiring of controllers. 

Such solutions rely on Capitol Hill, where Congress is running out of time to extend the government’s funding and authorities for air travel. The five-year FAA Reauthorization Act runs out at the end of this fiscal year on Sept. 30; House and Senate bills are still in committees. 

Traveler preparedness 

Travelers are responsible for a level of preparedness, too, says Ms. Twidale of AAA. She recommends booking early morning flights to minimize the risk of disruptions, for instance, as well as opting for carry-on versus checked bags and buying travel insurance.

Passengers can also research airlines’ commitment to rebooking and compensation – tied to “controllable” cancellations and delays – through FlightRights.gov, a federal dashboard. 

“Knowledge is power,” says Ms. Twidale. “And planning’s important.”

Only so much falls under a customer’s responsibility and control, of course. On June 26, Ariana Duran’s JetBlue flight from Newark, New Jersey, heading home to Orlando, Florida, was delayed 11 times and then finally canceled.

The company reimbursed Ms. Duran for the canceled return flight, but not for the almost $700 she spent on another airline to head home as soon as possible. Ms. Duran, who needed to ask for an additional day off from work, received an apology email from JetBlue Airways stating that since her flight disruption was “uncontrollable,” she didn’t qualify for reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses. 

The marketing specialist says she understands some factors like weather are beyond an airline’s control, but she was frustrated by what she calls confusing exchanges with customer service – including an automatic rebooking for a week later that she couldn’t take. 

Overall, the experience has inspired Ms. Duran to do more consumer-protection homework ahead of future flights.

“You don’t really care until it happens to you,” she says.