United CEO Blames FAA As Storms Force More Flight Cancellations: Report

Storms forced many U.S. airlines to cancel roughly 1,500 flights on Tuesday, adding to the 3,500 canceled on Sunday and Monday.

The CEO of United Airlines Holdings Inc UAL criticized the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after heavy storms caused thousands of flights to be canceled recently, claiming that the agency's air-traffic-control issues exacerbated the disruption, reported WSJ.

"I'm also frustrated that the FAA frankly failed us this weekend," wrote United CEO Scott Kirby in a message viewed by The WSJ.

Kirby also stated that the FAA reduced arrival rates by 40% and departure rates by 75% on Saturday. This, he argues, caused a chain reaction of delays, canceled flights, and redirected planes that "put everyone behind the eight ball when weather actually did hit on Sunday, which was further compounded by FAA staffing shortages Sunday evening."

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"We will always collaborate with anyone seriously willing to join us to solve a problem," an FAA spokesman told the WSJ.

As of Tuesday afternoon, United had canceled about 14% of its flights scheduled for the day, outpacing rivals, the report cited flight-data provider Anuvu. 

JetBlue Airways Corporation JBLU canceled over 14% of its flights on Tuesday, while Delta Air Lines, Inc. DAL canceled ~8%.

"We're going to continue to build that durability around weather," stated Delta CEO Ed Bastian during an investor presentation on Tuesday, where the airline boosted earnings forecast.

Price Action: UAL shares are trading higher by 0.62% at $56.38 premarket on Wednesday.