Passengers who experienced delays overnight or those who did not make it to their destination at all will be eligible to receive the miles.
By Christine Burroni
United Airlines has given 30,000 miles to passengers who were affected by the carrier’s slew of cancellations and delays ahead of the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Travelers whose flights were canceled or delayed through June 24 through June 30 will receive the miles, the airline confirmed to Travel + Leisure on Monday. Passengers whose flights were delayed overnight or those who did not make it to their destination at all will be eligible to receive the miles.
Passengers will be notified by email with instructions regarding how to add the miles to their accounts.
United’s CEO Scott Kirby initially blamed the delays and cancellations on the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) inability to manage traffic amid its staffing shortage, however this week, in a memo obtained by T+L, he called this past week “one of the most operationally challenging weeks I’ve experienced in my entire career.”
Specifically, he explained how weather affected Newark Airport, noting that service was reduced by “60-75% for an average of 6 to 8 hours each day.”
On Friday alone, the airline canceled more than 230 flights or 8 percent of its operation, according to CNBC.
The cancellations and delays come as AAA projected that over 4 million people will be traveling for the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
United also faced backlash as Kirby took a private jet last week — the same day the carrier canceled 750 flights — amid the flight disruptions that stranded its customers.
“Taking a private jet was the wrong decision because it was insensitive to our customers who were waiting to get home,” Kirby said in a statement according to The Associated Press. “I sincerely apologize to our customers and our team members who have been working around-the-clock for several days — often through severe weather — to take care of our customers.”
As of Monday morning, United has 37 flight cancellations and 165 delays, according to FlightAware.
Looking ahead, the FAA tweeted Monday that weather could continue to affect flights on throughout the county.
