MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) -
Many travelers were left stranded after flight delays and cancellations.
Flights were canceled over the Father’s Day weekend and airports are starting to rebook flights, Monday.
A passenger whose flight got pushed back mentioned the number of times his booking was delayed.
“[We boarded] our flight and everybody was on, and then they were about to push back,” said Joey Roberts. “Then, they told us it was canceled, so we had to get off our flight. They tried to re-book us for this morning, [but] that got messed up so now we are re-booked for this evening.”
“When we got canceled and everything, everyone here was like, ‘We’ve been doing this for days,'” said Jamie Thomas. “They told us on the plane that it was because somebody was over their hours they could work.”
“I got delayed coming here from Columbus,” said Quinazia Brown.
Only a few flights have been affected at MIA, but some people are still waiting to leave Miami.
“There was a couple today in line that was here since Friday morning,” said Jamie Thomas, who also had a flight cancellation.
Since Friday, thousands of flights have been canceled or delayed due to the weather and staffing shortages.
Captain Evan Baach with Delta Airlines spoke on the labor issue.
“We are not staffed appropriately for the summer flying,” said Baach. “We don’t have enough pilots, and the company is scheduling more flights than they can fly.”
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said the U.S. may take action against airlines for the disruptions. He said he met with airline executives last week, urging them to do more and wants to see how they do come Fourth of July weekend.
Florida has become a popular location for many tourists, although now they are hoping to be able to return home.
“We’re just getting back from a cruise ship,” said Rodney Sampson. “We immediately found out, as soon as we got off the cruise, that our flights were cancelled. Then on Sunday we were supposed to leave, flight got cancelled again.”
Summer travels have become more costly since inflation has increased in the country.
“We know this is gonna be a tough summer,” one woman said.
Rising gas prices have made all forms of travel more expensive.
The current national average for gas is $4.98 a gallon, the highest it has ever been.
Some lawmakers have considered suspending the federal gas tax, which would save drivers $0.18 a gallon.
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