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UA flight cancellations seen to have minimal impact on NMI
The Commonwealth Ports Authority said the CNMI will experience minimal impact as a result of United Airlines’ cancellation of flights.
In a brief statement from CPA chair Kimberlyn King-Hinds, she said that United’s flight crew in the Marianas is based in Guam, so the CNMI will experience minimal impact from United’s flight cancellations.
“In our communications with United, the impact to this region is minimal given that the flight crew is based out of Guam. At this time, we are not experiencing any cancellations as a result of [the COVID-19 variant] omicron,” she said.
According to an email from United Corporate Communications to Saipan Tribune, the spike in omicron cases has greatly impacted its flight crew, resulting in cancellation of numerous flights but the most impacted area will be the U.S. domestic market.
“The nationwide spike in omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation. As a result, we’ve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport. We’re sorry for the disruption and are working hard to rebook as many people as possible and get them on their way for the holidays,” United told Saipan Tribune.
According to a Guam media source, United is one of many other airlines in the United States that have started canceling hundreds of flights over the weekend due to staffing issues caused by the spread of the new COVID-19 variant, omicron.
