More than 800 flights canceled as late-winter storm stymies Denver
Travelers flying through the Mile High City are in for a rough Thursday.
Hundreds of flights to and from Denver were canceled outright by midday, with dozens more delayed, as the biggest storm in at least three years worked its way across Colorado.
The storm was forecasted to have an extremely tight gradient of accumulation. This means there could be big differences in snowfall totals across small areas, even just a few miles.
Denver, which was expected to sit at the edge of the heaviest gradient, was expected to see 6-10 inches of snow Thursday into Friday, according to Accuweather; areas to the west and south of the city could see 1-3 feet.
By noon local time, just more than 800 flights to and from Denver International Airport (DEN) had been canceled, according to FlightAware — roughly 40% of the airport's scheduled operations for the day.
Southwest was the most heavily affected airline, with 378 cancellations across its network, or 8% of its total schedule, mostly for flights touching Denver. The airport is one of Southwest's biggest focus cities.
Flight delayed or canceled? Here are the best credit cards with trip delay reimbursement
Frontier and United, which also have a heavy presence in Denver, also had many cancellations. Frontier axed 126 flights (19%), and United canceled 90 (3%) of its mainline-operated flights.
SkyWest — a regional airline that flies smaller routes on behalf of United, as well as American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines — canceled 219 flights, or 11% of its operation. Most of these were scheduled to fly to or from Denver. SkyWest was scheduled to fly 258 Denver flights for United on Tuesday and four for American Airlines, according to data from Cirium.
In late 2022, Southwest suffered a multi-day operational meltdown during the holidays after becoming overwhelmed by a severe winter storm across much of the country. Its operation at Denver was severely affected, which was one of the major drivers of the collapse, even as other airlines recovered.
Since then, Southwest has touted improvements it has made to its Denver winter operations specifically; it also shared improvements regarding its broader approach to keeping the rest of its network patent when there's a major disruption.
Related: Southwest has a plan to get back on track after holiday meltdown. Here's what execs tell TPG
Since the meltdown, Southwest's improvements seem to have helped the airline bounce back after disruptions due to weather or other issues.
However, Thursday's storm will be the first real test of the resiliency it's worked into the Denver operation. So, all eyes will be on Southwest and the Mile High City as the snow tapers off.
Related reading:
- Key travel tips you need to know — whether you're a beginner or expert traveler
- The best travel credit cards
- Where to go in 2024: The 16 best places to travel
- 6 real-life strategies you can use when your flight is canceled or delayed
- 8 of the best credit cards for general travel purchases
- 13 must-have items the TPG team can't travel without
TPG featured card
at Bilt's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 1X | Earn up to 1X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee |
| 2X | Earn 2X points + 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases |
Pros
- Unlimited up to 1 Bilt Point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments
- Elevated everyday earnings with both Bilt Points and Bilt Cash
- $400 Bilt Travel Portal hotel credit per year (up to $200 biannually)
- $200 Bilt Cash annually
- Priority Pass membership
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons
- Moderate annual fee
- Housing payments may include transaction fees, depending on the payment method
- Designed primarily for members seeking a premium, all-in-one card
- Earn points on housing with no transaction fee
- Choose to earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend. Use Bilt Cash to unlock point earnings on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee, up to 1X.
- 2X points on everyday spend
- $400 Bilt Travel Hotel credit. Applied twice a year, as $200 statement credits, for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
- $200 Bilt Cash (awarded annually). At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- Welcome bonus (subject to approval): 50,000 Bilt Points + Gold Status after spending $4,000 on everyday purchases in the first 3 months + $300 of Bilt Cash.
- Priority Pass ($469/year value). See Guide to Benefits.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.