![]() Know before you go: Your rights as an aviation passengerĪirline passengers are entitled to a refund if the airline cancels a flight, regardless of the reason. In light of the 20 flight disruptions that have affected millions of passengers and staffing challenges, which affect an airline’s entire network, it is important that DOT sustain these efforts to analyze airlines’ scheduling practices. Some of DOT’s actions to monitor airlines’ scheduling practices are long standing, while others are more recent, reflecting increased DOT oversight. Over the course of our review, DOT enhanced its oversight of airline-scheduling practices. Earlier this month, DOT announced its plans to require airlines to provide passengers with compensation and cover expenses (meals, hotels, and rebooking) when airlines are responsible for cancelations.ĭOT also has broad authority to investigate unfair and deceptive practices of airlines-such as unrealistic flight-scheduling practices. For example, in 20, DOT used a range of methods in response to flight disruptions, which included processing passenger complaints, issuing guidance, conducting investigations, and taking enforcement actions against airlines that didn’t meet consumer protection regulations. ![]() In addition to these meetings, DOT tracks and investigates how airlines comply with consumer protection laws and regulations. In response to mass cancellations in 20, FAA and the Department of Transportation (DOT) met with airlines several times to discuss both disruptions and airlines’ customer service obligations to passengers experiencing airline-caused flight cancellations and delays. What is being done to address and prevent mass-cancellation events? These representatives also told us that it has become more difficult to ensure they have enough crew to staff aircraft and to set reliable airline schedules than before the pandemic. But shortages in pilots and aircraft crew had a greater impact on flight, according to representatives from all of the four airlines and three unions we spoke with. Sometimes, aircraft maintenance issues and the lack of mechanics to address them were the cause for cancellations. Overall, the leading causes for flight cancellations in late-2021, as well as April 2022, were factors within the airlines’ control. airlines that we looked at (7 of 10) cancelled a larger percentage of their flights during the last half of 2021 compared to years before the pandemic.Īnd while some flight cancellations were inevitable-due to weather and other events-airlines experienced longer, more frequent multi-day cancellation events in 2021 and early-2022 than in the years just before the pandemic. Increased cancellations were not limited to the airlines that received wide media attention. But then travel demand rose in the spring and summer of 2021 and so did cancelation rates. During the first half of 2021, air traffic remained low-as much as 14% lower than during the same time in previous years. Interestingly, flight cancellations grew despite airlines operating fewer flights. This exceeded flight cancellations during the same 4 months in 2018 (56,356) and 2019 (67,190). Specifically, there were 81,593 flight cancellations from January to April 2022. ![]() Recent flight cancellations were as bad as you thought they wereĪs many as 15 million passengers experienced flight cancellations, and potentially more than 116 million saw flight delays, between July 2021 (when flight disruptions became more frequent) and April 2022 (the most recent data at the time of GAO’s analysis).įlight cancellations rose substantially in late-2021 and during the first 4 months of 2022-outpacing levels seen just before the pandemic (in both 20). Staffing issues, particularly for pilots, are especially prevalent among regional airlines that smaller communities rely on.ĭistribution of Active Air Transport Pilot Certificates in 2022 by Age Group Similarly, airlines and airplane repair stations have reported challenges recruiting and retaining enough young mechanics to meet demand. While the number of pilots is projected to grow, there may not be enough pilots to meet demand in the future. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) data, over the next two decades an average of about 4,300 FAA-certificated pilots will be reaching the mandatory retirement age of 65 each year. Part of the concern about potential shortages has to do with a future wave of retirements. ![]() The aviation industry and stakeholders have raised concerns that there will not be enough pilots and mechanics to meet projected demand for air travel. Travelers could continue to see disruptions at the airport as airlines continue to address challenges. ![]()
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