Omicron crisis: 3 major airlines cancel flights over Christmas holiday

At least three major airlines have reported cancelling dozens of flights as illnesses largely tied to the omicron variant of Covid-19 take a toll on flight crew numbers during the busy holiday travel season.

Germany-based Lufthansa said Friday that it was cancelling a dozen long-haul transatlantic flights over the Christmas holiday period because of a “massive rise” in sick leave among pilots.

The cancellations on flights to Houston, Boston and Washington come despite a “large buffer” of additional staff for the period.

The airline says it couldn’t speculate on whether Covid-19 infections or quarantines were responsible because it was not informed about the sort of illness. Passengers were booked on other flights.