Travelers look at a display board showing canceled and delayed flights at Orlando International Airport on New Year’s weekend, despite thousands of flight cancellations and delays across the United States.
Paul Hennessy | Light Rocket | Getty Images
The Federal Aviation Administration will meet with top American Airlines staff next month to discuss ways to improve air traffic to and from the Florida tourist hotspot, where weather delays earlier this month disrupted the travel plans of tens of thousands of passengers.
The FAA told CNBC that the two-day meeting will take place in person in Florida. Spirit Airlines will be attending, according to a person familiar with the matter. Other airlines with large operations in Florida such as American Airlines and JetBlue Airways are also likely to attend.
Airlines were flying more to some of the busiest airports in the Sunshine State like those serving Miami, Tampa and West Palm Beach than they did in 2019, before the Covid pandemic. Florida had a record 118 million domestic visitors last year, according to state data.
Frequent thunderstorms in the state, along with higher travel demand and lower than required levels of airline staffing, contributed to delays or cancellations of more than 9,000 flights earlier this month.
“The limiting factor on the East Coast was the weather during peak demand,” the FAA said in a statement.
Air travel in Florida also faces challenges such as increased military operations and more space launches, all while the pandemic has slowed training for air traffic controllers.
Some airlines are shrinking their schedules, aiming to improve reliability as they build more slack into their operations. New York-based JetBlue, Fort Lauderdale-based Spirit and Seattle-based Alaska Airlines have all cut their schedules for the peak summer season.
“No one expected Florida in April… to get 115 hours [air traffic control] The delay in that month, compared to 22 in 2019, said JetBlue Airways chief Joanna Giragati, in a quarterly earnings call on Tuesday, “to reflect the resources we have and the external environment.”
Airlines representatives did not immediately comment on the scheduled meeting.