Denver International Airport experiences flight delays, cancellations due to government shutdown
More flight cancellations are expected at Denver International Airport, which is among 40 total airports impacted nationwide this weekend. They started Friday after the FAA ordered a reduction in flights due to the shutdown and stress on air traffic controllers who are not getting paid.
The impacts are ramping up due to the government shutdown, and airlines are now working closely with the FAA to ensure they meet the mandate. At the same time, airlines are also ensuring they're being transparent and minimizing disruptions for travelers.
Jonna McGrath is the vice president of airport operations for United Airlines in Denver. She said the airline cancelled 4% of its flights Friday, which is about 21 flights at DIA. For United, hub-to-hub flying and international flying are not impacted.
"We're looking at what is the load factor? Can we consolidate customers? Do we have a lot of frequency?" McGrath said during a press interview. "It does become complicated, but we have done a great job of leveraging technology to be able to figure out what is the least impactful to the overall operation."
McGrath said one example is Colorado Springs typically runs 12 flights a day, which has now been reduced to eight flights a day.
Like many other airlines, United is posting cancellations and delays online, making sure customers have all the information they need before traveling. That includes sending out notifications and updates through email, text and online. The airline is also offering rebooking options.
"We were focused on making sure we're extremely transparent with our customers, and we're giving them as many options as we can," McGrath said.
For travelers Cheyenne and Isabelle, they're going home after a special trip that ended not how they thought it would.
"We're on our honeymoon, doing a little away trip, looking at the mountains," Cheyenne told CBS Colorado.
"We were sitting at home just watching a movie, then got an email from Frontier saying our flight was canceled," Isabelle told CBS Colorado.
The couple had their flight rebooked six hours after their original departure.
"It was very last minute," Cheyenne said. "We're the last people to get on the plane."
United says there are open and empty seats on other flights for now, but some travelers also worry about the impact during busy holiday travel season is in just a few weeks.
"I just want to go, ready to come home," Cheyenne said.
United has finished posting the cuts and cancellations for the weekend. Over 50% of customers that were impacted have already rebooked, getting to their destination within four hours of their original flight.
The airline will be posting the cuts to Monday's flights by the end of the day on Friday.