New York Attorney General Letitia James wants the U.S. Department of Transportation to take action to address widespread commercial flight cancelations and delays.
James sent a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg calling on the Federal Aviation Administration to “keep airlines in line” and lift the burden of disrupted travel plans off consumers.
American Airlines to end service to Ithaca on September 7
In June, American Airlines announced its plans to cut service to four U.S. cities- including to Ithaca, New York- due to an ongoing pilot shortage.
Those four cities (Islip and Ithaca, New York; Toledo, Ohio; and Dubuque, Iowa) are served by AA’s regional affiliates, according to Ithaca Journal, with as many as two flights per day to larger airports.
The cut service to those four is effective September 7.
AA also cut 100 daily flights between July 1 and August 7 to “improve operational reliability” for customers and employees, said the airline.
Airlines causing headaches for New Yorkers over canceled return flights
“Airlines appear to be advertising and booking flights they do not have the personnel to operate, which has caused delays and forced consumers to incur additional travel costs,” said James in a release last week.
According to James, New York City area airports have had the highest summer cancelation rates in the country.
The Office of the Attorney General received a number of complaints from New York families who were left stranded in airports across the country due to canceled return flights, wrote James.
She urged the FAA to take the following actions to prevent cancelations and delays:
- Advertise and sell only as many flights as they have adequate personnel to fly and support,
- Provide full or partial refunds when flights are canceled or rescheduled, and,
- Provide passengers additional payments to compensate them for the additional costs they incur when dealing with flight delays and cancelations, including payments for hotel stays, taxi fares, car rentals, and gasoline.
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