Airlines already canceling Friday flights as winter storm snarls Christmas travel
A "once in a generation" storm is complicating the travel plans for millions of Americans this holiday season as cold temperatures, frigid winds and heavy snow sweep over 17 states.
This holiday travel season is slated to be the busiest for airlines since the pandemic began, but the storm is now threatening the travel plans of tens of thousands of flyers. Cancellations and delays are soaring Thursday as both airlines and airports try to grapple with the wintry weather.
As of 1 p.m. Thursday, 3,716 flights had been delayed and 1,835 had been canceled, according to FlightAware, a site that tracks flight data. Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD) and Denver International Airport (DEN) led with the most cancellations and delays, but disruptions piled up at airports across large swaths of the U.S.
Nearly 1,000 flights had already been canceled for Friday as U.S. carriers preemptively pared back schedules in anticipation of the storm.
The National Weather Service had already advised travelers – especially those traveling by car – to shift plans away from the storm, which the agency described as an "arctic blast of dangerous and life-threatening cold." The storm had already affected the Great Plains Thursday morning and is expected to move toward the Midwest, South and East Coast between Thursday and Friday. Nearly 100 million Americans are under winter storm advisories.
Many major airlines — including Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, JetBlue, Spirit Airlines and Southwest Airlines — have been offering waivers that, generally speaking, allow customers to make one change to their itineraries without paying change fees or a recalculated fare. Dates and airports covered by the waivers varied by carrier, but airlines are attempting to let customers rebook flights to fly either before or after the storm.
Before the storm, Airlines for America — a trade group representing the largest airlines in the U.S., including American, Delta and United — said it was prepared to handle travel between Christmas and New Year's.
Sharon Pinkerton, the senior vice president for policy at A4A, reiterated that hiring more staff and adjusting schedules had largely fixed the operational issues that had plagued airlines for the past year.
The Transportation Security Administration also said it was prepared for a holiday travel surge. TSA administrator David Pekoske added that the organization would strive for wait times of 30 minutes or less at security checkpoints in airports across the country.
Read more:
TPG featured card
Rewards
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
| 5X miles | 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel |
| 10X miles | 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel |
Intro offer
Annual Fee
Recommended Credit
Why We Chose It
The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month
Rewards Rate
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
| 5X miles | 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel |
| 10X miles | 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel |
Intro Offer
Earn 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200K miles when you spend $150K in the first 6 monthsLIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus milesAnnual Fee
$395Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.740-850Excellent
Why We Chose It
The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month