Wintry weather sparks travel havoc in US

Wintry weather sparks travel havoc in US
By admin


More than 4000 flights have been cancelled or delayed in the US northeast as a winter storm delivered freezing rain and snow ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, one of the year's biggest travel weekends.

Rain was falling in Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Washington, according to the National Weather Service, and snow and sleet was predicted for Wednesday night.

The storm is not likely to leave more than an inch or two of snow, but the weather service predicted "havoc" for travellers along the East Coast from the Carolinas up through New England.

But with the American Automobile Association predicting 46.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles (80 kilometres) or more for the holiday, most by car, the bad weather could create big problems on highways.

By late Wednesday afternoon, 671 flights had been cancelled and another 3467 were delayed. The most affected airports were Philadelphia, Newark in New Jersey and LaGuardia in New York.

Reagan National Airport in Washington was also affected, according to Flightaware.com.

United Airlines reported average delays of more than 90 minutes at JFK International in New York and 190 minutes in Newark and LaGuardia.

Flight traffic at Boston's Logan airport was also disrupted.

Many travellers opted to drive on Wednesday, taking advice from authorities to leave early to beat the winter weather.

Some airlines said certain passengers travelling to or from some northeastern US cities could change their flights without paying a penalty.

Thanksgiving, celebrated each year on the fourth Thursday in November, is a popular US holiday. Americans gather with family for a big meal that traditionally features roast turkey, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin pie.

The estimated average round-trip distance travelled in the US during Thanksgiving this year is 549 miles (884km), according to the AAA.

Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

Latest News

  • Cruise

P&O rescues Rotary volunteers after collapse of Air Vanuatu

P&O Cruises Australia has answered a plea for help from a group of young Australian Rotary volunteers, stranded in Vanuatu following the collapse of Air Vanuatu. The students, many of them teenagers from Albury, NSW, were volunteering for a youth project run by the Hive Rotary Club Australia when the airline abruptly cancelled all flights, […]

  • Destinations

Intrepid continues expansions with launch of first DMC in Jordan

Intrepid has increased its presence in the Middle East with the opening of its first destination management company in Jordan. Based in Amman, the local team will operate Intrepid’s range of nine experiential small group tours in Jordan from this summer, with a view to expanding the range for 2025 and beyond. Zina Bencheikh, managing […]

  • Appointments

Minor hotels appoints Puneet Dhawan to key Asia role

Global hotel owner and operator Minor Hotels has appointed Puneet Dhawan as head of Asia as the group plots its growth in Asia and India. From July, Dhawan will be responsible for the performance of all Minor Hotels properties in Asia, working in close collaboration with the Minor Hotels senior leadership team and will report […]

  • Appointments

Abercrombie & Kent and Crystal appoint Evon Ler to director of sales, Asia

Abercrombie & Kent Travel Group have announced that Evon Ler will join them in the new role of director of sales, Asia. She will work closely with Tony Archbold (VP, Sales, APAC, Crystal) and Susan Haberle (VP, Sales & Partnerships, APAC, A&K) with trade support across the region. Ler comes to the A&K family with more […]