Thousands of U.S. flights disrupted over New Year's

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Thousands of flights were delayed or canceled within the U.S. over the New Year's weekend adding to a lengthy list of disruptions during the holidays because of adverse weather and rising cases of the coronavirus.

Among the airlines, the worst hit seemed to be SkyWest and SouthWest, which combined saw over 900 cancellations.

Transportation agencies across the country were also suspending or reducing services due to COVID-related staff shortages.

In the months preceding the holidays airlines were wooing employees to ensure solid staffing during this period.

That’s after thousands were furloughed or laid off during the pandemic.

However, U.S. airline cabin crew, pilots and support staff were reluctant to put in overtime during the holidays despite financial incentives.

According to some airline unions, workers feared getting COVID-19 and also didn’t want to deal with unruly passengers.

This period of peak air travel also saw massive disruptions around the world with more than 11,000 flights delayed.