Omicron virus disrupts global holiday travels

Over the Christmas weekend, more than 6,000 flights were cancelled while others were delayed. [Courtesy]

Airlines across the world have in recent weeks cancelled thousands of flights as the new Covid-19 variant continued to spread.

Over the Christmas weekend, more than 6,000 flights were cancelled while others were delayed as countries around the world reintroduced stricter measures to contain the spread of the new Covid-19 variant.

Airlines also reported staffing shortages as crew were forced to isolate and travellers to seek other forms of travel.

U.S. airlines cancelled more than 1,300 flights on Sunday as the Omicron variant of Covid-19 thinned out the number of available crews, while several cruise ships had to cancel stops after outbreaks on board, upending the plans of thousands of Christmas travellers.

Commercial airlines had canceled 1,318 flights within, into or out of the United States by mid-afternoon, according to a tally on flight-tracking website FlightAware.com.

At least three cruise ships were also forced to return to port without making scheduled port calls after Covid-19 cases were detected onboard, according to multiple media reports.

It was the third straight day of pain for some Americans travelling over the weekend as the Christmas holidays, typically a peak time for travel, coincided with a rapid spread of the Omicron variant nationwide.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease official, warned of rising US cases in coming days and potentially “overrun...hospitals, particularly in those regions in which you have a larger proportion of unvaccinated individuals.”

“It likely will go much higher,” he said of the Omicron-driven surge even as President Joe Biden last week unveiled new actions aimed at containing the latest wave and continued urging vaccinations and other prevention strategies.

With rising infections, airlines have been forced to cancel flights with pilots and cabin crew needing to quarantine while poor weather in some areas added to travellers woes.

A total of 997 flights were scrapped on Christmas Day and nearly 700 on Christmas Eve. Thousands more were delayed on all three days.

A Delta Airlines spokesperson said “winter weather in portions of the U.S. and the Omicron variant continued to impact” its holiday weekend flight schedule but that it was working to “reroute and substitute aircraft and crews.”

United Airlines also said it was working to rebook impacted passengers, while a Southwest Airlines spokesperson said its cancellations were all weather-related.

Overall, US airports most heavily impacted were in Seattle, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth and JFK International in New York.

A White House official, who asked not to be named, said the administration was monitoring the delays closely but noted that while they can disrupt plans “only a small percentage of flights are affected.”

Meanwhile, a Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd cruise ship turned back to Ft. Lauderdale, CNN reported, and on Sunday a Carnival Corp ship returned to Miami after Covid-19 was detected onboard, although it was unclear if the cases were Omicron.

Carnival said “a small number on board were isolated due to a positive Covid-19 test” on board its Carnival Freedom ship.

A Holland America ship also returned to San Diego on Sunday after Mexican authorities banned it from docking in Puerto Vallarta citing onboard cases.