Cancelled Flights, Resurgent Covid Deliver Christmas Gut Punch
NDTV
Some 8,300 flights have been grounded and tens of thousands more delayed from Friday through Sunday -- one of the busiest travel periods of the year.
Holiday travel headaches and safety worries swelled Sunday with thousands of flights cancelled, events scrapped and new Omicron cases soaring, as people wrap up Christmas celebrations bruised by a resurgent COVID-19 pandemic.
Some 8,300 flights have been grounded and tens of thousands more delayed from Friday through Sunday -- one of the busiest travel periods of the year -- with multiple airlines acknowledging that Omicron spikes have prompted staffing shortages.
Effects have rippled worldwide and the hurt was expected to bleed into the work week, with more than 1,100 flights already facing cancellations Monday and almost 300 more on Tuesday, according to flight tracker FlightAware.
The highly transmissible Omicron strain has sent new cases skyrocketing across the globe, with countries reviving dreaded lockdowns, major sports leagues cancelling Boxing Day football and rugby fixtures, and cruise ships returning to port with Covid-infected passengers.
