US carrier United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby has apologized for using a private aircraft to travel from Teterboro Airport in New Jersey to Denver International Airport in Colorado. It is a journey lasting less than an hour, but what has created controversy is the fact that the passengers of his company were struggling with cancelled and delayed flights due to weather conditions.

"Taking a private aircraft was a bad decision, as it was insensitive to our customers waiting to fly home. I sincerely apologize to the passengers and team members who worked around the clock for several days to take care customers", said Kirby over the week-end.

An airline spokesperson explained Kirby's use of a private plane, which he flew on Wednesday 28 June and paid for out-of-pocket, on the grounds that the manager failed to secure a seat aboard a commercial flight operated by United Airlines, which cancelled more than 750 scheduled flights Wednesday alone (25% of those scheduled), according to FlightAware data.