Massive Winter Storm Effects Air-travel and Package Deliveries

Winter Storm Elliott has swept through the nation resulting in record amounts of snow, bitterly cold temperatures, canceled flights and a death toll of at least 57. 

This Christmas was expected to be one of the busiest periods for travel since before the pandemic. However, due to the storm, many flights got delayed or canceled resulting in disruptions in mail deliveries as well as many passengers getting stranded for days. 

FedEx made an announcement on Friday that warned customers of delayed package deliveries. “FedEx Express experienced substantial disruptions at our Memphis and Indianapolis hubs last night due to severe winter weather that has been moving across the United States.”

UPS also admitted delivery and pickup services were being affected by the storm. 

Reports of delayed and canceled flights also made headlines over the last week. The snow, ice, and freezing temperatures derailed travel across the nation. Thousands of travelers faced unexpected conditions.

However, Southwest Airlines stood out as particularly unstable. On Monday, the airline cut 70% of its schedule in an effort to recover operations, according to CNBC. Additionally, Delta canceled 9% of its mainline flights, United canceled 5% and American canceled less than 1%. 

CNBC reported that staffing shortages and technology failures were among the many other challenges that Southwest is facing this week. 

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has deemed the mass number of cancellations “unacceptable” and “will examine whether Southwest is complying with its customer service plan,” according to a statement.