Winter's icy grip tightened on U.S. airports as thousands of flights fell victim to delays and cancellations due to adverse weather conditions, with airlines and passengers across the country facing a turbulent start to their week. Data from FlightAware revealed the stark numbers, with more than 2,000 flights canceled on just Monday, Southwest Airlines shouldering the lion's share of difficulties.
Disarray dominated Dallas-Fort Worth's travel landscape, with two of its major carriers, Southwest and American Airlines, slashing schedules amid the freeze. By late Sunday afternoon, 29% of Southwest's flights for the day had been delayed and 10% canceled, at the same time American delayed 20% of their flights, causing a cascade of travel plans unraveling. As Chicago and Denver, crucial winter hubs, became bottlenecks exacerbating the situation.
With the National Weather Service issuing a winter weather advisory for North Texas through noon Monday, Dallas Love Field Airport issued a candid advisory on its social media, alerting travelers to "significant" expected cancellations and to anticipate alterations in their itineraries. The airport reassured its commitment to safety, pledging readiness "to treat and clear surfaces to allow for safe operations," a message in considerable contrast to the chaos biting the DFW area, according to The Dallas Morning News.
Elsewhere, Denver and Chicago's airports grappled with their share of challenges, Denver International alone seeing 650 Southwest cancellations on Monday, the fallout being felt as far as Buffalo, New York, where a winter storm forced the rescheduling of an NFL game and laid siege on air travel with 83% of flights canceled on Sunday, according to FlightAware statistics cited by Fox Business.
Amidst the wintry disruption, airlines also contended with the Federal Aviation Administration's grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX 9 after Alaska Airlines encountered an emergency mid-flight earlier in the month, which led United and Alaska Airlines to cancel and ground additional flights—a development-only adding layers to the industry's struggle against winter's relentless onslaught.
