United Airlines CEO Points Finger at FAA for Recent Flight Disruptions

by Donald Wood
Last updated: 8:55 AM ET, Wed June 28, 2023

The CEO of United Airlines is holding the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) accountable for a series of travel disruptions over the past weekend.

In a statement to United Airlines employees, CEO Scott Kirby expressed that the FAA’s staffing and inexperience resulted in numerous delays and cancellations at Newark Liberty International Airport, one of the airline’s busiest hubs, as reported by Reuters.com.

Around 5,400 domestic flights had to be canceled due to severe storms that persisted from the weekend to the early work week. Kirby addressed the situation in a letter to employees, squarely placing the blame on the FAA.

“The FAA has historically been able to effectively manage the weather conditions we encountered in EWR without causing significant disruptions to our operations and customers,” said Kirby. “But this past Saturday was different.”

Kirby continued, “The FAA significantly reduced arrival rates by 40 percent and departure rates by 75 percent. This is likely a reflection of understaffing and lack of experience within the FAA. It resulted in extensive delays, cancellations, diversions, and disruptions to crew and aircraft schedules.”

FAA officials acknowledged that departures to the Washington D.C. area had to be temporarily halted due to a computer failure at an air traffic control facility in the region. These issues compounded with the inclement weather, leading to further delays and cancellations in the northeastern United States.

In response, an FAA spokesperson stated that the agency is open to collaborating with anyone willing to contribute towards finding a solution to the problem.

Last year, Kirby and other airline executives have emphasized that the FAA plays a role in delays and cancellations. Kirby has also advocated for increased air traffic controllers within the government agency during a Global Aerospace Summit.

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