United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby faulted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for ordering flight cancellations and delays over the weekend due to severe weather.
Thunderstorms and failing equipment at an FAA facility created significant delays for air travelers across the U.S. East Coast on Sunday evening as Washington and New York were forced to briefly halt most incoming flights.
In a memo written to employees on Monday, the head of United Airlines blamed a shortage of FAA’s air traffic controllers for “unprecedented challenges” last weekend at its Newark hub.
“We estimate that over 150,000 customers on United alone were impacted this weekend because of FAA staffing issues and their ability to manage traffic,” Kirby wrote….