U.S. Moves To Restrict Flights At O'Hare

The U.S. Department of Transportation has summoned U.S. airlines serving Chicago O'Hare International Airport to a meeting on Aug. 4 to discuss reducing schedules at the nation's second busiest airport.

DOT Secretary Norman Mineta and Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Marion Blakey said they are prepared to invoke new congressional authority allowing the government to force schedule reductions during peak times to reduce congestion. A 7.5 percent voluntary cut in flights by American Airlines and United Airlines, the airport's largest carriers, has failed to curtail delays at O'Hare.

Almost 14,500 flights were delayed at O'Hare in May, a new record, and delays in June have surpassed annual totals for 2000 and 2002, Blakey said. FAA computer models showed delays at O'Hare contributed to an increase of about 25 percent in the average minutes of arrival delay per day at the nation's 35 busiest airports.

"O'Hare's on-time performance is unacceptable and has a substantial ripple effect on our nation's aviation system," Mineta said. "It is critical that all O'Hare carriers set schedules that better match the airport's current capacity and keep passengers moving."