Transport chief Buttigieg says U.S. airlines still need to improve performance

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Monday that U.S. airlines are improving performance, but the country's aviation system still faces challenges as airlines ramp up staffing. Airlines over the weekend canceled about 3,000 flights as bad weather snarled traffic. Buttigieg has urged airlines to set more realistic scheduling and boost staffing to improve performance.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Monday that U.S. airlines are improving performance, but the country's aviation system still faces challenges as airlines ramp up staffing. Airlines over the weekend canceled about 3,000 flights as bad weather snarled traffic.

Buttigieg has urged airlines to set more realistic scheduling and boost staffing to improve performance. "But I think you can tell that they are not there yet is that when you do have a curve ball hitting the system, the system is brittle and it's taking longer than it should to come back into balance," Buttigieg told Reuters in an interview.