THIS WON’T FLY

Omicron Wrecks Holiday Travel With 1,300 U.S. Flights Called Off in One Day

Flight schedules were decimated as crews fell sick or were forced to quarantine.

Thousands of holiday travelers had their plans wrecked Sunday after U.S. airlines were forced to cancel more than 1,300 flights. According to Reuters news agency, commercial airlines called off a total of 1,318 flights within, into or out of the U.S. on Sunday as flight crews fell sick or were forced to quarantine with COVID-19. Seattle, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth and New York’s JFK were the worst affected airports in the U.S., and globally, at least 3,023 flights were canceled. On the seas, at least three cruise ships had to return to port without making scheduled stops after crews detected COVID-19 outbreaks on board. Dr. Anthony Fauci warned Sunday that U.S. COVID case numbers “likely will go much higher” this week as the Omicron variant continues its rapid spread.