Summary
- United Airlines adjusts its flight schedule to enhance operational services.
- The airline aims to reduce congestion and manage disruptions effectively.
- Changes come amid staffing challenges and operational constraints at Newark Airport.
United Airlines will cut back on flights from its New Jersey hub next month to avoid flight issues on the heels of mass disruptions around the July 4 holiday weekend.
The airline, which is currently scheduling about 410 flights per day from its Newark Liberty International Airport hub, will drop down to about 390 flights per day in August, the airline detailed during an earnings call this week obtained by iBestTravel. Previously, United flew about 435 flights per day out of Newark pre-pandemic.
By cutting flights in advance, United hopes to recover quicker when issues like bad weather inevitably arise.
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“We’re now doing more than ever to mitigate the impact of weather congestion and other infrastructure constraints at Newark. Frankly, to build a schedule at Newark, it’s more manageable given the frequency of weather events and the very real operating constraints that exist there even on blue sky days,” United CEO Scott Kirby said during the call, adding, “we’ve already put them in motion, already started to improve the working experience for our people and travel experience for our customers.”
The decision to cut back at Newark — which United noted sees flight departures about every 1.5 minutes — comes just weeks after the airline was forced to cancel hundreds of flights ahead of the July 4 holiday weekend. United later handed out 30,000 miles to passengers who were affected by the cancellations and delays.
Furthermore, it also comes months after the Federal Aviation Administration allowed airlines to cut back on service from both New York and Washington D.C.-area airports ahead of the busy summer season amid a staffing shortage, which United agreed to do.
On the earnings call, airline executives stated that United was in constant communication with the FAA about Newark, but would continue to cut back on flights there “until we can come up with a creative solution to the constraints that we’re all facing there.”
In addition, United also upgraded its app last month to allow travelers who experience flight disruptions to re-book and request meal and hotel vouchers through the app.
