Commercial airline delays and cancellations have gotten worse over the last 30 years I’ve been flying and I do wonder why. It seems to me that 5 - 10 years ago there was transition to more centralized control by the FAA and company scheduling departments. It seems like in the 90s pilots could make weather decisions themselves, carry more fuel if needed and plan alternates. We made it to our destinations most of the time. Now, we are lucky to make it to our destinations 50% of the time. Also, when there were delays, the airport staff knew what to do and could handle the passengers. Now when there are delays, the airport staff are in complete chaos, have no idea what to do and are completely clueless. Witness my wife’s flight yesterday from ORD to CLT. Rescheduled 9 times (not kidding), two aircraft taxied but failed to depart, 12 hours late and arrived at 2:54am. Yes there was an afternoon thunderstorm that past through the airport but it only lasted 10 minutes. Are the old experienced station managers all gone?
Some years I would be airborne twice, three times a week. flown 2.5 million miles on commercial airlines over 30 years