The large majority of airline delays and cancellations are due to bad weather and the resultant FAA impacts throughout the aviation system. I’ve heard anywhere from 60-70%. A snow storm at O’Hare, thunderstorms in Atlanta, fog in San Francisco, tornadoes in Dallas, all send ripples throughout the system. Even if you’re not flying to those destinations.
The FAA is also tasked with cramming too many jets into the airspace on very tight intervals. Their technology is getting better but we have a way to go. In short, our aviation industry is stretched.
To be sure, individual airlines have their share of problems. Aircraft “mechanicals” will always be a fact of life. You don’t want to ride on an unsafe jet, right? Good, because I don’t want to fly one. There are also aircrew rest requirements also
mandated by the FAA. The reverberations of an interrupted travel day affect those as well.
This is not the answer. The answer is to have a competent Secretary of Transportation and an effective FAA. Not penalizing the companies producing a product in a highly regulated environment.
Also spent time in the industry. Automatic refunds won’t penalize the airlines, it will hurt the consumers. Currently a cancelled flight earns most customers a service experience that tries to rebook them, usually without cost increase.
