@Steve M — That must be it. Alibaba and the 40 thieves!

@George Romey — No one is reasonably backing this crazy, so let’s get to bigger issues:

Oh, the convenient excuses airlines will use. For instance, lately, I’ve witnessed how United likes to blame ‘FAA staffing’ as a panacea to absolve them of any responsibility, and not just at EWR.

Let’s talk ‘weather’ for a moment. Should ‘weather’ where your inbound aircraft originated from qualify (even if it’s a totally different location from your origin or destination)? At some point, it’s within the airlines’ control to properly plan for their own operations (well-maintained aircraft with proper staff, etc.)

We are so used to favoring for-profit corporations over workers and consumers in this country.

At least in the EU, UK, and Canada, they penalize airlines and compensate passengers when it’s within the airlines’ control (See EU/UK 261, Canada’s APPR). These regulations don’t bankrupt airlines, or raise costs (they still have ample ULCCs like Ryanair that sometimes have fares as low as €20; so, yes, an affected passenger could literally ‘make’ money off the airlines’ failures.) Ultimately, these rules create incentives for airlines to operate more reliably, and if not, at least passengers are paid for the inconvenience.

I presume you (and a few others) will ignore all that, and continue to endorse these companies screwing over you and your fellow passengers. Something about ‘bootstraps’ or ‘handouts’ or whatever. Oh, why must we keep harming ourselves…