Tuesday, March 12, 2024
Flights started to return to normal Monday after bad weather caused thousands of flight delays and cancellations during busy spring break weekend.
More than half of all flights in and out of Tampa International Airport (TPA) were delayed or cancelled on Sunday.
On Saturday, more than two-thirds of all flights in and out of TPA were delayed or cancelled.
“This is an extraordinary circumstance, right. You have an incredible weekend in Tampa, far more travelers than normal, a real surge, and so the combination of the two, the weather, and this—this kind of result is really inevitable,” said travel expert James Ferrara, the president of Inteletravel.
TPA predicts Monday will set an all time passenger record with an estimated 97,000 passengers traveling through the Airport. Sunday was a record of approximately 96,000 passengers.
Ferrara highly recommends travelers download the app for their airline and make sure to allow notifications so they can get instant updates, and for the easiest way to rebook.
“What I do not like to see is people going into those lines at the airport, sometimes hundreds of people in line and waiting there for hours and hours,” said Ferrara.
When rebooking through an agent, Ferarra said to speak up for yourself to make sure you get the best option.
“The airline has our requirement, a statutory requirement to rebook you. You’re not required to accept that rebooking. You can push back and say that doesn’t work for me, I have a wedding to get to or whatever the situation is, and the airline is going to do their best,” said Ferarra.
The airline is not required to provide reimbursements for delays and cancellations caused by weather, but Ferrara said it doesn’t hurt to ask.
“You can ask for meal vouchers, you can ask for overnight vouchers, but I want to temper everyone’s expectations, if it is a weather-related event, the airline is under no legal obligation to do that,” he said.
TPA anticipates the upcoming weekend could be just as busy and the high traffic will continue through Easter weekend before leveling off in early to mid-April.
As of 4 p.m. Monday, TPA reported 97 delays and 0 cancellations. You can check the status of your flight on the airport’s website.
Saturday, April 27, 2024
