By EFE
06 Jul 2024, 08:13 AM EDT
Los Angeles – Complaints from air passengers in the United States have risen to levels not seen since the 2020 pandemic, when travelers complained about airlines’ delays in offering refunds, the Department of Transportation (DOT) reported today.
The DOT received nearly 97,000 complaints about airline problems in 2023, up more than 10,000 from 86,000 in 2022.
The 2023 complaints are “the highest number on record except for 2020,” the DOT said in a statement.
Of the 96,853 complaints received in 2023, 67,661 concerned US airlines and 24,991 concerned foreign airlines. While 3,162 of the complaints were against travel companies.
The DOT received a total of 2,685 disability-related complaints last year, nearly 600 more than in 2022.
The sheer volume of complaints received even delayed the publication of the data presented in the Air Travel Consumer Report (ATCR).
The figures were revealed just as one of the busiest holidays of the year is expected to see record air travel, with some 71 million people travelling this weekend, although most will use their cars (60.5 million).
According to data from the automobile group AAA, some 5.74 million are expected to choose the plane (which is expected to be a record).
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) predicts its officers will screen more than three million travelers at U.S. airports on Sunday, surpassing the June 23 mark of more than 2.99 million, according to data cited by ABC.
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