Arnold Palmer airport director optimistic after Spirit flights remain cancel-free so far this week

Jeff Himler, Tribune-Review, Greensburg, Pa.
·2 min read

Aug. 10—After a week of mostly canceled and delayed flights, Spirit Airlines service improved dramatically this week at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport.

Spirit, the sole commercial carrier at the Unity airport, "had definite issues," said Gabe Monzo, executive director of the Westmoreland County Airport Authority. But he expressed confidence at the authority's meeting Tuesday that the airline is rebounding from operational problems.

According to the Spirit website, flights between the airport outside Latrobe and Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Orlando and Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., all arrived as scheduled Monday. In comparison, one flight each to Orlando and Ft. Lauderdale were canceled on Sunday, as were one inbound flight each from Ft. Lauderdale and Myrtle Beach.

There were no canceled flights at the airport on Tuesday, according to aviation tracking website FlightAware.com.

Flight cancellations at Arnold Palmer Regional began on July 30 and grew over the following days, as was the case at other airports, including Pittsburgh International.

"Things went to hell in a hand basket rather quickly," Monzo said of the situation at Arnold Palmer Regional. "When you only have one carrier, and that goes down, you're in trouble."

Spirit officials have said the company was dealing with "overlapping operational challenges including weather, system outages and staffing shortages" that resulted in "proactive cancellations."

On Tuesday, Monzo said he'd received a message from Spirit officials indicating the airline was turning the corner in addressing its operational problems.

Monzo suggested a resurgence in leisure-related air travel, after easing of restrictions related to the covid-19 pandemic, may have set the stage for a "perfect storm" that triggered flight cancellations for Spirit and other airlines at multiple airports.

"I don't think they'll have this again," he said of Spirit. "I think they're a very viable corporation. I think they'll do fine."

Passenger reactions to the cancellations, including postings on the airport Facebook page, have ranged from messages of support for the airport staff to those who have vowed to "never fly Spirit again," Monzo said. "Everybody's frustrated, and I don't blame them. Hopefully, most of the people recouped what they lost or got some relief."

He said airport staff initially "took it on the chin" when cancellations started mounting. "Once the public knew our staff was there to help them, then things went very cordial."

"We trained our people how to treat people nicely, how to work with them," said authority member Don Rossi.

Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jeff at 724-836-6622, jhimler@triblive.com or via Twitter .