Frontier Airlines blamed weather and stranded crews for the rash of flight delays and cancelations over the weekend that affected many passengers traveling in and out of Cleveland.
In a statement to News 5, Frontier said about 70 percent of its flights were delayed over the weekend and around 275 flights were canceled because crews were stranded or pilots were “timed out” from flying.
Cleveland traveler Carlton Davis spent the night in the airport trying to fly back from Las Vegas. He was told the next available flight wouldn’t be until Friday so he rented a car and drove 30 hours to get back home.
“Hey we’re human beings,” Davis told News 5 from the rental car. “If this was your family you wouldn’t want this.”
Other passengers at Cleveland Hopkins had the same story.
“They said they could probably get us out of here on Friday,” said Avon traveler Jim Borden. “I’m not waiting until Friday, I already have my plans made.”
Passengers said they were told the problems were due to weather and that they could receive a refund in 5 to 7 days.
But Capt. Brian Ketchum, Chairman of the Frontier Airlines Master Executive Council of the Air Line Pilots Association, released a statement saying that the delays and cancelations were not only because of weather.
“While weather conditions made operations for all airlines at Denver International Airport more challenging last weekend, this most recent meltdown by Frontier Airlines is due to the same executive mismanagement and misplaced focus on cost-cutting that has placed Frontier near the very bottom of the industry in operational performance and customer satisfaction. Leaving passengers and even their own cockpit and cabin crews stranded for hours without information is outrageous––even more so when this quarter was one of the airline’s most profitable ever financially.
“Frontier’s private investors, led by William Franke and Indigo Partners, must decide whether they want to run a reliable airline or loot it. If it’s the former, they must invest in the infrastructure and frontline employees who are trying to succeed without corporate support.”
