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With a record number of flights expected this summer, the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday it would expand the use of an air-traffic control strategy intended to minimize weather-related delays.

The agency's "airspace flow program" allows airlines to choose between flying longer routes to avoid stormy weather or accepting delays that are aggravating for fliers and costly for the industry.

"If your flight isn't scheduled to fly through bad weather, you don't have to sit on the tarmac," FAA Administrator Marion Blakey said in a prepared statement. If it is affected by bad weather, "your airline has the choice of taking a delay ... or flying around the storm."

The program was introduced last year in seven cities in the Northeast, reducing delays due to bad weather by 9%, the FAA said. This summer, the program will be used in 18 cities, adding locations in the South and Midwest.

The FAA, which developed the program with input from industry representatives, estimated the program will save $100 million per year in reduced costs for airlines and the public.

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