Thousands of flights grounded as nor'easter impacts millions

A fierce storm is currently battering a vast area from Maine to South Carolina. Airlines have canceled numerous flights, and travel disruptions could persist for several days.

"Travel will be chaotic, so if you're heading to or from the Northeast and your airline hasn’t yet canceled your flight… consider postponing to avoid frustration," advised John E. DiScala, founder and editor-in-chief of JohnnyJet. He added, "If rescheduling isn’t an option, don’t forget to pack some snacks and your patience."

Winter Storm Kenan is bringing sustained winds of about 30 miles per hour along the coastline, with gusts reaching up to 60 miles per hour. In Boston, over 18 inches of snow is anticipated, while New York City could see up to a foot of snow.

As you can imagine, airlines are quite overwhelmed again this weekend.

"The airlines started rolling out travel waivers for this major storm as early as Thursday night, indicating they anticipate significant disruptions to their operations in New York City, Boston, and other areas along the U.S. East Coast," stated Tim Jue, a San Francisco-based reporter covering airlines and travel.

According to flight tracking service Flight Aware, by 10 a.m. on Saturday, January 29, over 3,500 flights had been canceled, with an additional 827 cancellations already reported for Sunday.

Jue informed TPG that if travelers are heading anywhere in the Northeast today, "... there’s a strong likelihood your flight won’t depart due to the extensive number of cancellations."

The hardest hit so far? JetBlue has canceled an astounding 68% of its scheduled flights today. Both New York-JFK and Boston Logan (BOS) are among the airports most affected by today’s blizzard conditions.

Regional carrier Republic has grounded 62% of its flights today. United Airlines has canceled 397 flights, roughly 22% of its schedule, while American Airlines has reduced its flights by 18%.

"We need to monitor the situation closely after the storm," Jue remarked. "Airlines have detailed plans for winter storm recovery at airports, but those plans assume the airline is fully staffed and that there isn’t a highly contagious COVID-19 variant in circulation."

Indeed, as reported by Flight Aware, JetBlue has proactively canceled 10% of its Sunday flights, and Republic has already scrapped 19% of its schedule.

Additionally, airlines are still dealing with the fallout from a significant operational disruption that extended from Christmas into the new year. A TPG analysis revealed that one in every 13 flights was canceled during the holiday season.

"The major flight disruptions we experienced in December 2021 were caused not just by sick flight crews but also by widespread winter weather across the country," Jue noted. He added, "I don’t expect the disruptions to be as severe this time, but you’ll definitely want to double-check your flight status if you’re traveling to the Northeast in the next few days."