United Cancels More Flights For Fourth Straight Day

Thursday, December 27th 2007, 11:24 am

By: News On 6

DENVER (AP) _ United Airlines, still recovering from weekend storms in the Midwest, canceled dozens more flights Thursday as the second winter storm since Christmas threatened to pile 20 inches of new snow on Colorado.

Up to 8 inches of new snow was expected in Denver, which set a record for its snowiest Christmas with the nearly 8 inches that fell Tuesday.

United, the largest carrier at Denver International Airport, scrapped 66 flights _ about 16 percent of its daily schedule at its second-largest hub _ to help prevent planes passing through Denver from being stranded there, spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said.

It marked the fourth straight day that United had canceled flights. The Chicago-based carrier grounded fewer than 5 percent of its 3,300 flights worldwide Wednesday as it moved crews to deal with schedules disrupted days earlier when bad weather hit O'Hare International Airport.

Meanwhile, discount carrier Skybus Airlines said Thursday it was operating normally again after two days of cancellations due to maintenance issues with a pair of its seven planes. The Columbus, Ohio-based company canceled 18 flights over Tuesday and Wednesday, affecting an estimated 1,000 holiday travelers.