According to a new report by USA Today, major U.S. carriers such as American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, Southwest and United Airlines have cancelled 23,500 flights in September in total owing to the disruptions caused by hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria.
Although most of the carriers have not specified anything about the recent earnings calls but said that 8000 flights were cancelled in total. It costed the airline about $75 million in pre-tax earnings for the third quarter.
On the other hand, Southwest revealed that it had to cancel about 5000 flights for the month. it was not only for the hurricanes but also for the earthquakes in Mexico. The airline had to suffice a loss of about $100 million in pre-tax earnings for the three-month period.
Delta Airlines did not mention the number of flights cancelled however, reportedly lost $120 million in net income for the same quarter.
“The hurricane response highlighted the humanity and professionalism of the American team and our industry as a whole,” said Doug Parker, American Airlines CEO in a statement.
It has not been just the flight cancellations but the Labor Department announced that Florida lost 127,000 jobs in the month of September following the Hurricane Irma.
