American Airlines has cut thousands of flights from its schedule for the month of March as omicron, pilot shortages and delivery delays on Boeing’s 787 planes hinder the recovery from the two-year-old COVID-19 pandemic.
The Fort Worth-based airline has axed nearly 40,000 flights from its March plans since the middle of December, including more than 1,600 arrivals and departures out of DFW International Airport, the airline’s biggest hub, according to Dallas-based Airline Data Inc.
An American Airlines spokesman confirmed the cuts and said the airline is working with passengers in advance to make sure that changes create “minimal” impact on customers.
Other airlines, including Atlanta-based Delta and Chicago-based United, have made similar cuts in recent weeks as they face the same issues confronting American. Delta has cut about 30,000 flights for March in recent weeks and United has cut 10,000 flights.
Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, which only releases schedules five to six months in advance of flights, hasn’t made the same kind of flight reductions for March.