Airport chaos continues after American Airlines fleet is grounded

Tens of thousands more passengers will be stranded or left in limbo today as
American Airlines grounded another 900 flights at vital “hub”
airports over safety concerns.

The world%26rsquo;s largest airline cancelled flights for the third day in a row after
the US aviation regulator raised concerns that its aircraft repair crews and
government inspectors had been lax in their inspections of its ageing fleet
of MD-80 jets.

The fear was that insufficient safety checks on electrical wires could spark
fires on board the aircraft. Today%26rsquo;s cancellations bring the total number of
passengers disrupted this week to more than 250,000.

Dallas-Fort Worth, one of the “hub” airports that has been most
affected by the groundings, has tried to soothe passengers by opening
restaurants late and handing out nappies and baby formula to families in
need.