United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby apologized on Friday for jumping on a private plane to leave the New York area earlier this week while thousands of United passengers were stranded because the airline canceled so many flights .
“Taking a private jet was the wrong decision because we didn’t take into account our customers who were waiting to get home,” Kirby said in a statement from the airline. “I sincerely apologize to our customers and our team members who have worked 24/7 for several days – often during severe weather – to take care of our customers.”
Kirby concluded by pledging “to further express my respect for the dedication of our team members and the loyalty of our customers.”
Kirby took the private flight from Teterboro, New Jersey, to Denver on Wednesday as United canceled 750 flights — a quarter of his daily schedule. This figure does not include United Express flights.
United canceled nearly 3,000 flights this week, most of them at its Newark Liberty International Airport hub in New Jersey, which was battered by thunderstorms for most of the week
Kirby blamed a shortage of Federal Aviation Administration air traffic controllers for the disruptions in Newark last weekend. In a note to employees, he said “that frankly, the FAA has let us down” by reducing the speed at which planes can arrive and depart from the airport, where United is the dominant carrier.
Canceled flights left United planes and crews out of position, which hampered the airline when inclement weather hit Sunday, Kirby said.
While United continued to struggle this week, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, whose department includes the FAA, said on Twitter that airlines “with the exception of United” have recovered from the storms. He made the point clear by including a bar chart that compared United’s cancellation rate to the rest of the industry.
United’s operations have improved since midweek. According to the FlightAware tracking service, the proportion of canceled flights fell from 26% on Wednesday to 18% on Thursday and 8% by Friday evening. But even as of Friday, United was on track to lead all US airlines in the number of canceled flights for the seventh straight day.
United vowed to fix its operations in time for the July 4 bank holiday weekend, which promises to get hectic at the country’s airports. More than 2.7 million people were screened at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints on Thursday, and Friday should see a similar number — possibly even more.
United passengers took to social media and spoke to reporters about long lines at the airport and staying overnight after flights were cancelled.
Unions representing the airline’s pilots and flight attendants joined the criticism, accusing United management of poor planning, a lack of staffing and operating too many flights.
Chicago-based United announced Wednesday that it had not paid for the CEO’s flight. The airline would not say whether Kirby often takes private planes.