More than 14% of American Airlines flights cancelled Sunday

More than 14% of the daily trips, or around 740 American Airlines flights, were canceled on Sunday.

Since Friday, the airline has canceled almost 1,600 of its 16,073 total flights, making it a turbulent Halloween weekend for the airline.

The airline cited weather as the reason for the cancellations in a statement. High winds, according to a spokesperson, have been a concern in Texas, where the company is based.

“This week saw two days of severe winds in DFW, with gusts of up to 50 mph on Thursday, creating crosswind limitations that sharply reduced arrival capacity by more than half. This weather drove a large number of cancellations at DFW, as we could only use two runways instead of the usual five that handle our operation,” the company wrote.

Weather issues, according to the airline, have affected its workforce, which was already reduced as it recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“With additional weather throughout the system, our staffing begins to run tight as crew members end up out of their regular flight sequences. To make sure we are taking care of our customers and providing scheduling certainty for our crews, we have adjusted our operation for the last few days this month by proactively canceling some flights,” the company said.

The company claims that it is taking these steps to minimize inconveniences.

“Most of the customers impacted by these changes are being rebooked the same day, and we apologize for having to make these changes,” the company wrote.

According to the website flightaware.com, more than 160 American Airlines flights had been delayed by around 12 p.m. ET Sunday, and 437 had been delayed on Saturday.