Airlines cancel 2,000 US flights for Thursday

AIRLINES cancelled almost 2,000 US flights for Thursday (Sep 29) after Hurricane Ian hit Florida’s Gulf Coast with catastrophic force in one of most powerful US storms in recent years.

The hurricane is causing significant disruptions to US air travel, especially in the south-east United States. Since Tuesday, airlines have cancelled more than 5,000 flights to Friday.

Airlines cancelled 2,163 flights on Wednesday as a number of Florida airports temporarily halted operations, including Tampa, Orlando, Sarasota-Bradenton, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Naples and St Petersburg/Clearwater.

Airline tracking website Flightaware said 1,935 flights for Thursday had been cancelled and 738 Friday flights scrapped. Airlines cancelled 403 flights on Tuesday ahead of the storm.

The Orlando airport said it expects to resume commercial operations sometime on Friday. The Tampa airport said it will be closed till at least Thursday.

Walt Disney said on Tuesday it would close its Orlando theme parks on Wednesday and Thursday.

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Airlines cancel about 600 flights in US as thunderstorms hit operations

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Florida is a major part of US aviation, and some carriers such as JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines typically expect 40 per cent or more of their daily flights to touch a Florida airport.

Up till Wednesday, JetBlue cancelled 25 per cent of its US flights and 20 per cent of Thursday flights, while Southwest cancelled 13 per cent of Wednesday flights and 9 per cent for Thursday. Another 3,106 US flights were delayed on Wednesday.

Airlines offered waivers for travellers impacted by the hurricane to rebook tickets without charge. REUTERS