American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) said the lack of staff and bad weather caused more than 1400 flights to be canceled in three days. According to the airline's statement, 376 flights were canceled on Friday, 551 on Saturday and 480 on Sunday.
In an internal note seen by CNBC, American Airlines chief operating officer (COO) David Seymour said the troubles began with bad weather in Dallas Fort Worth (DFW).
The problem has been exacerbated by the fact that the airline is facing a serious shortage of flight attendants. Thousands of American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) employees were laid off due to reduced demand during the pandemic.
According to Seymour, the company aims to reactivate 1 flight attendants from November 800 and reach maximum capacity by December.
The low-cost carrier Southwest faced a similar problem in early October, when more than a thousand flights were canceled and more than a thousand other flights were delayed. It took Southwest three days to return to normal operations.
According to the statement, American Airlines (A1G) (AAL) expects to solve the difficulties "soon" and solve the problem of staff shortages by the beginning of the holiday season.