Mass flight cancellations hit the US in wake of Hurricane Ian

Across the US more than 3,800 flights scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday were cancelled, including more than 3,200 at Florida airport as Hurricane Ian hit the southeastmost US state.

Most of the cancellations were at Orlando International Airport, which closed yesterday morning, and Tampa International Airport, which closed 0n Tuesday. Airports in Fort Lauderdale and Miami stayed open yesterday, but had more than 600 cancellations by the afternoon.

Some smaller airports across Florida also closed on Tuesday, with Melbourne Orlando International closing on Wednesday afternoon and announcing it will remain shuttered on Thursday.

The Washington Post reported that as of 2:30pm Wednesday, 2,111 flights across the US had been cancelled with another 1,721 axed for Thursday. Florida flights accounted for 1,800 of the Wednesday cancellations and flights scheduled for four Florida airports accounted for over 1,400 of the Thursday cancellations.

Air traffic over Florida last Wednesday vs today at 15:00 UTC (11:00 am local time). https://t.co/H0wfmCsCai pic.twitter.com/2uhjfhOyAN
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) September 28, 2022

Florida commercial airports are always busy, per airline consultant Robert W. Mann, and this did not abate during the pandemic.

“What happens as the storm crosses the state affects flying at each origin, destination, and hub on a connection,” Mann said.

Another factor influencing flight cancellations is that these disruptions are coming close to the end of the month, when some crew may have reached their maximum flying time.

Airports say they will know when they can reopen once the storm has passed and the damages can be assessed. Passengers have been advised to check with airline about their flights.

“Airlines, their dispatch operations and crews try to recover evacuated aircraft to re-establish service as soon as the affected airports re-open, which local FAA will determine based on condition of the airfield and electronic navigation aids,” Mann told The Washington Post.

“This can be within hours of storm wind passage, or could take days if facilities must be repaired or replaced.”

Featured Image: iStock/encrier

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florida Fort Lauderdale Hurricane Ian miami orlando international airport Tampa International Airport