Airlines canceled hundreds of Christmas Eve flights as Covid hit crews.

More than 2,000 flights have been cancelled worldwide, greater than 500 of them U.S. flights. United Airlines canceled greater than 170 mainline flights Friday, about 9% of its schedule, in keeping with flight-tracking web site FlightAware.

“The nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation,” United stated in an announcement on Thursday. “As a result, we’ve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport.”

The disruptions come after airline executives stated they count on some of the busiest days for the reason that pandemic started over the year-end holidays, regardless of the surge in Covid infections, pushed by the omicron variant. The Transportation Security Administration screened near 2.2 million individuals on Thursday, up from 846,500 however shy of the greater than 2.5 million who handed by means of TSA checkpoints two years earlier, earlier than the pandemic.

United stated it was attempting to rebook as many vacationers as attainable. It introduced most of the cancellations a day earlier than.

U.S. airline executives this week requested the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officers to loosen quarantine guidelines for totally vaccinated people who take a look at optimistic for Covid to 5 days from the present 10, citing potential staffing shortages and flight disruptions. The CDC loosened its guidelines for healthcare employees on Thursday.

Delta canceled greater than 140 flights, or 7% of its Friday’s schedule, citing dangerous climate within the Salt Lake City and Seattle space, two of its hubs, and the affect of the fast-spreading omicron variant. Delta cancelled greater than 100 Saturday flights whereas United canceled about 70. JetBlue Airways canceled greater than 70 flights on Friday, about 7% of its day by day operation.

“Delta teams have exhausted all options and resources — including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying — before canceling around 90 flights for Friday,” the airline stated in an announcement. “We apologize to our customers for the delay in their holiday travel plans. Delta people are working hard to get them to where they need to be as quickly and as safely as possible on the next available flight.”

More than 90% of Delta staff and greater than 96% of United’s U.S. employees are vaccinated, the airways have stated.

Delta and United’s flight disruptions are far fewer than the mass cancellations some airline clients confronted this summer season and fall as carriers together with American and Southwest grappled with staffing shortages and dangerous climate.

Both of these airways provided staff extra compensation to work peak holiday trips and meet attendance targets. Southwest had only one cancellation on Friday and American had 11, in keeping with FlightAware.