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| The worst affected US companies are Delta, United Airlines and American Airlines. (Photo by= EPA) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] Airlines in the US are continuing to be hit hard by cancellations as a spike in Omicron variant cases causes global travel disruption over Christmas. A quarter of the more than 4,000 flights canceled worldwide on Friday and Saturday were in the US, according to the website Flightaware, BBC reported.
The issue came amid crews testing positive, or being forced to self-isolate to stem the spread. The US, like countries around the world, has seen a sharp rise in cases. Despite early findings that Omicron is milder than other variants, scientists are concerned by the sheer number of infections. "When we have millions and millions and millions of people, all sick, all together at one time, it doesn't take a large percentage of those people to topple over the hospitals," Dr Hallie Prescott, associate professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan, told the New York Times.
In the UK - which once again saw record-breaking case numbers on Friday - volunteers are preparing for a Christmas Day booster jabs push to reduce the impact of Omicron. But in South Africa - where the Omicron variant was first identified - the government has ended Covid contact tracing, except for serious cluster outbreaks or prisons.
