More than 1,700 flights canceled in the US on Wednesday

Around 1,790 flights were canceled as of Wednesday evening and more than 4,800 flights reported delays, leaving hundreds of travelers stranded at airports. The delays and cancelations stem from a mix of bad weather and staffing shortages caused by Covid-19 cases.

Southwest Airlines canceled 534 flights and United Airlines canceled 171. Meanwhile, Alaska Airlines canceled 120 and SkyWest canceled 349, according to data from FlightAware. JetBlue canceled 10 percent of its Tuesday schedule. Over 20,000 flights have been canceled in the last two weeks.

Some of the cancelations were due to severe winter storms that are passing through the Midwest and East Coast. Storms affected some of the nation’s largest airports, including Chicago, Denver, Washington D.C., and Baltimore.

For the past few weeks, airlines have had to cancel flights due to staff shortages caused by Covid-19, as omicron cases nationwide continue to rise.

"Granted, Omicron wave was a swift surprise. However, it was made worse by a failure to plan for any hiccups, be it weather or virus," said American Airlines 737 pilot and spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association Dennis Tajer.

Some airlines are addressing staffing shortages by preemptively canceling hundreds of flights, such as JetBlue. Other airlines, such as United Airlines, Southwest, and Spirit Airlines, are increasing salaries in an attempt to hire more staff.  

The number of flight cancellations is expected to decline because of the new isolation guidelines of the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC). Asymptomatic individuals are now required to quarantine for five days, instead of ten. Those who test positive on the fifth day should continue to quarantine.