The travel situation in Biden’s America is bad—and it’s about to get a lot worse.

Just this past weekend, we’ve seen widespread flight delays and cancelations, a stress-inducing situation that was enough to apparently cause one unfortunate air traveler to suffer cardiac arrest. It all comes amid a shortage of pilots as summertime demand for air travel has skyrocketed to nearly pre-pandemic levels. And President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate last year didn’t help things at all, causing airlines to lose desperately-needed personnel at a critical time.

Now, according to a report by Fox Business, American Airlines will be cutting service to three cities: Islip and Ithaca in New York, and Toledo, Ohio. Service to these airports is expected to end on September 7.

The bad news just keeps on coming for small U.S. cities. @AmericanAir is dropping 3 regional airports from its route map effective Sept. 7:

• Islip, NY
• Ithica, NY
• Toledo, OH

Employees have already been notified, and flight cancellations will be processed next week.

— Zach Griff (@_ZachGriff) June 19, 2022

“We’re extremely grateful for the care and service our team members provided to our customers in Islip, Ithaca and Toledo, and are working closely with them during this time,” the carrier explained in a statement that sounded more like a condolence statement for a dead loved one than an announcement for ending air service.

American Airlines also said it would reach out to customers who have already scheduled flights to or from those destinations after the September 7 cutoff, and would offer alternative arrangements. The announcement couldn’t come at a worse time, with air travel booming around the country just as a distinct lack of qualified pilots is making everyone’s lives more difficult.

Fox Business also reported that the airline industry is experiencing a devastating shortage of at least 12,000 pilots, which has caused the vast majority of the nation’s over 300 airports to begin cutting back on the number of flights they’re offering. According to the Regional Airline Association (RAA), “there were 188 communities that lost at least 25% of their air service, either during the pandemic or during the first half of 2022 as the pilot shortage worsened.”

American Airlines isn’t the only one affected, either—Ben Minicucci, the CEO of Alaska Airlines, announced last month that it would have daily cancelations up to the beginning of this month, since it lacked enough pilots to cover its spring schedule. JetBlue has also reduced flights during the summer months.

And Delta has some PR issues of its own. A committed young Braves fan was forced to miss last night’s game when his flight was canceled by the “Official Airline of the Braves” over “staffing issues.”

This kid is taking his first ever trip (grad present) to ATL to see the @Braves but the “official airline of the Braves” cancelled his flight for “staffing issues” and he’ll miss tonight’s game. Dear @Braves, please save him a Murphy bobblehead for when he gets here tomorrow 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/Bdjtvc74Lx

— Larissa (@larlarluke) June 20, 2022

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Todd Jaquith

Staff Writer

"Originally from South Florida, Todd Jaquith now lives in sunny Santa Fe, New Mexico. He holds a degree in Anthropology from Florida Atlantic University."

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