FORT WORTH, Texas, April 13 (UPI) -- American Airlines, the largest U.S. carrier, operated a full schedule of flights Sunday after several days of chaos and canceled flights.
The airline was still trying to provide seats for passengers on the 3,300 flights that were canceled, The New York Times said.
The Federal Aviation Administration forced American to take many of its MD-80 jetliners out of service because of improperly stowed bundles of wiring in wheel wells. The agency has stepped up inspections because of complaints that it cut Southwest Airlines some slack on maintenance.
The MD-80s have capacities of more than 100 passengers. Since most flights are fully booked or close to it, the cancellations affected more than 300,000 ticketed passengers.
American announced plans Saturday to raise fares by up to $30 for round-trip domestic tickets to offset higher fuel costs.
At a news conference Thursday, Gerard Arpey, the airline's chairman and chief executive, said he took "full, personal responsibility for our being in this situation," The Dallas Morning News reported.
Arpey said the cancellations would cost the airline "tens of millions of dollars."
