The past week has been extremely rough for United Airlines' (NASDAQ: UAL) customers and employees. An uptick in flight cancellations initially sparked by bad weather and FAA staffing issues spiraled out of control, leading to an operational meltdown reminiscent of Southwest Airlines' late-2022 fiasco.

Operational miscues have become all too common at U.S. airlines recently, due to the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on staffing and training levels, both at the FAA and individual airlines. Yet United's recent problems are particularly concerning because they expose management's hubris. That raises uncomfortable questions about other ways management's overconfidence could come back to bite United shareholders.

United's recent troubles began last weekend, when an FAA staffing shortage compounded the impact of inclement weather in the New York area, causing a slew of flight delays and cancellations.

Continue reading

Source Fool.com