The government’s $900,000 fine Monday against an American Airlines affiliate for holding hundreds of passengers on board planes for hours on an airport tarmac may serve as a deterrent to future such incidents. But industry analysts warned that may come with the price of more canceled flights. Even before the fine against American Eagle Airlines, airlines had cancelled more flights to avoid pushing up against the new three-hour limit on tarmac delays the Department of Transportation imposed 20 months ago. Now, cancellations will shoot up even more, said airline analyst Michael Boyd.

“If there’s a 20 percent chance of this happening, an airline will cancel,” Boyd said, because of the potential for massive fines.