Latest news with #flightcancellations
CNN
6 hours ago
- Climate
- CNN
Severe storm triggers hundreds of flight cancellations at busy Atlanta airport just as holiday travel cranks up
Hundreds of flights have been canceled at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport – the busiest airport in the world – after a severe storm overnight, just as a busy travel period ahead of the Fourth of July gets started. Over 450 flights into and out of Atlanta were canceled as of early Saturday afternoon, according to FlightAware. Hundreds more were delayed. Delta – which uses the Atlanta airport as its hub – is suffering the worst from cancellations, with 14% of the airline's total flights canceled, according to FlightAware. 'Severe weather overnight is causing delays and cancellations,' the airport said Saturday in a post on X, Powerful winds in Atlanta prompted the evacuation of most air traffic controllers from the control tower Friday evening, according to CNN affiliate WANF, citing the Federal Aviation Administration. A small crew stayed to handle inbound planes, reported WANF. Additionally, severe thunderstorms overnight brought quarter-inch hail to the city. More than 100 Delta aircraft require inspection before they're allowed to fly as a result, a Delta employee familiar with the situation told CNN as of late Friday evening. Delta's maintenance team was working 'quickly through the backlog,' the Delta employee said. There was also a ground stop in place Friday evening due to the severe weather, which limits inbound aircraft from taking off. The mounting delays come as millions of people prepare to travel for the Fourth of July. The AAA estimates that 72.2 million people will travel at least 50 miles or more from home during the holiday period, starting from Saturday, June 28, until Sunday, July 6, with 5.84 million travelers expected to fly to their destinations. The Atlanta airport expects to see 394,576 passengers over the holiday period, according to WANF. The Hartsfield-Jackson airport served over 100 million passengers in 2024, making it busier than London's Heathrow or the Dubai International Airport. CNN has reached out to the airport, Delta, and the FAA for more information. This is a developing story and will be updated.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Hundreds of flights delayed at Hartsfield-Jackson on Saturday morning
After hail storms and an hours-long ground stop at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, thousands of people are stranded on Saturday morning. According to flight tracker Flight Aware, 386 flights have been canceled so far on Saturday. Channel 2's Bryan Mims has been at the airport talking to passengers during Channel 2 Action News Saturday AM. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines confirmed that more than 90 flights were diverted or delayed because of intense thunderstorms, winds and hail on Friday night. They also said that technicians worked throughout the night to complete hail inspections on about 100 aircraft. Nearly all of those will be returning to service on Saturday. The FAA confirmed that the air traffic control tower at the airport had to be evacuated Friday night due to strong winds. Some controllers stayed in the tower to continue operations. This all comes over the busy Fourth of July travel period when airport officials estimate over 4 million people will pass through Hartsfield-Jackson. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
ABC News
a day ago
- ABC News
Does travel insurance cover cancellations due to war or natural disasters?
Do you really know what your travel insurance covers? This week, passengers faced cancellations and lengthy delays on flights due to the Middle East conflict, with routes to major cities cut off across the globe. While operations in Dubai and Qatar have resumed and airspaces reopened, it's times like these that it pays to know exactly what your travel insurance covers We spoke to the experts to find out what you're entitled to when a conflict breaks out or a natural disaster unfolds. In short, no. That's what Wendy discovered after buying travel insurance for her adult son weeks before the conflict in the Middle East. Stranded at Doha airport after winning a European holiday, and despite getting a full refund for the cancelled flight, Christopher was told he would have to pay the difference for an alternative ticket with another airline. "We were really shocked. I can understand war and unrest is a very top-tier issue, but it's still interesting how they can get around it because it falls under something that's outside of your control," Wendy said. It's a situation insurance expert Jodi Bird from consumer advocacy group CHOICE said was far more common than many people realised. "Pretty much across all policies there's a blanket ban," he said. "There's no policies that CHOICE are aware of that will cover claims resulting from war." It's pretty straightforward, according to Mr Bird. It's all about the bottom line. "Travel insurance generally doesn't like to cover things like war because it costs too much money," he said. "For some reason, they've decided that war is kind of a blanket ban across pretty much all policies." Put simply, it doesn't make a difference. You won't be covered regardless of the premium you're paying, Mr Bird said. Even the most expensive policies don't offer protection when conflict breaks out overseas. "You might find some variation in things like a pandemic — there were a lot more insurers that covered for pandemic before we had one," he said. Unfortunately, timing doesn't help. Wendy's family had no inkling there was a risk when they booked. "In what way, in our wildest dreams … a transit flight through Qatar, which thousands and thousands of passengers are doing around the world every day, would you ever consider that there's going to be a war there?" she said. The Insurance Council of Australia's deputy CEO, Kylie McFarlane, said it doesn't matter when the policy is taken out. If there is no conflict or war at the time of purchase, the fine print still excludes any claims arising from those events. It depends on your level of cover, but in many cases you may be protected. Natural disasters like floods, cyclones or bushfires are treated differently to war or a conflict. "Extreme weather events may be an inclusion," Ms McFarlane said. "It all comes down to the insurance policy and the provider, so if you're concerned, speak to your insurer." Absolutely — and don't give up if your claim is knocked back. "You should not accept that as the last port of call, unless you absolutely agree with them," Mr Bird said. "The first thing you need to do is raise a complaint to the insurer themselves and ask them to revisit your claim. And if they don't give you a satisfactory answer, you can escalate the complaint to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority." Wendy reached out to the insurance company, but they simply directed her to the clause on her policy showing that war or unrest made any claims null and void. "It's not one of those things that they even raise for you in the beginning, and even if you'd looked at the exclusions at the back, it still wouldn't occur to us," she said. Start by looking beyond the top-line benefits on the website and dig into the exclusions. "Every product disclosure statement has a section called 'general exclusions' — that's a bit that is good to read," he said. "That will give you an understanding of what they may or may not cover — big events like war, pandemic, terrorism, civil unrest. That will give you a good idea of what it is that you're actually buying." Yep. "Travel insurance is definitely worth it — especially just for the medical cost line," Mr Bird says. "It's worth it basically all the time for overseas travel. You will need travel insurance to cover the medical and repatriation costs if you have a problem overseas. Those are the kinds of things where you can really get into a lot of trouble financially if you're not covered." While Wendy's son was able to get a refund for the cancelled flight, they weren't able to pay out the difference of a more expensive flight for him to get to Europe. Or the extra costs associated with travelling from a different city to his intended destination. Wendy has a message for other travellers . "Beware, and understand that you can fully pay for your trip and be prepared, and you can buy your travel insurance, and then still you have to be prepared to cover all the costs yourself if something goes wrong," she said.
CTV News
a day ago
- Business
- CTV News
Here's a list of all major airlines that have suspended flights to Middle East
An Air Canada plane taxies down the runway at the Ottawa International Airport in Ottawa on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick Many airline services remain disrupted in the Middle East arising from the 12-day air war between Iran and Israel that ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that took hold on Tuesday. Air space closures and safety concerns continue to weigh on airline traffic in the region. Below are some of the airlines that have canceled their flights to and from the region: Aegean Airlines The Greek airline will proceed with flight cancellations from and to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, and Erbil up to and including the early morning flight on September 8. airBaltic Latvia's airBaltic said that all flights to and from Tel Aviv until September 30 had been canceled. Air Canada The Canadian carrier is suspending its flights from Toronto to Dubai until August 4. It had previously postponed resumption of service between Canada and Israel to September 8. Air Europa The Spanish airline said that it has canceled its flights to and from Tel Aviv until July 31. Air France The French flag carrier plans to resume its connections between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Tel Aviv, starting from July 7. It plans to resume its flights between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Beirut starting on June 28. KLM said that it had canceled all its flights to and from Tel Aviv until at least July 31. Air India The Indian airline will 'progressively' resume flights to the Middle East starting June 24 and will resume flights to and from the east coast of the U.S. and Canada 'at the earliest opportunity,' it said. Flights to and from Europe will also be reinstated from June 24. Arika The Israeli airline said all its flights to and from Israel are canceled until June 30, except to New York. Flights to Eilat are canceled until June 28. Delta Air Lines The U.S. carrier said that travel to, from, or through Tel Aviv may be impacted between June 12 and August 31. El Al Israel Airlines As of June 24, the Israeli airline began increasing flights and adding frequencies from key destinations. Starting next week, it added, flights will operate as scheduled, except for a few canceled flights. Etihad Airways Etihad said that it had canceled flights between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv until July 15. Emirates Emirates said that it had temporarily suspended flights to and from Iran and Iraq until and including June 30. Finnair The Finnish airline canceled its flights to and from Doha through June 30, as well as flight AY1982 on July 1. Finnair added that it was not flying through the airspace of Iraq, Iran, Syria, or Israel. flydubai The UAE airline said it was planning to resume its full schedule across the network from July 1. It will resume operations to Damascus and Tel Aviv on June 26. British Airways IAG-owned British Airways said that its flights to Tel Aviv remain suspended until July 31 and flights to Amman and Bahrain are suspended up to and including June 30. The airline also suspended flights to and from Doha up to and including June 25. IAG's low-cost airline, Iberia Express, had previously said that it had canceled its flights to Tel Aviv until June 30. Iberia will resume its flights to Doha on June 27. ITA Airways The Italian Airline said that it would extend the suspension of Tel Aviv flights until July 31, including two flights scheduled on Aug. 1. Japan Airlines The Japanese carrier canceled its flights to Doha until July 2. Lufthansa Group Lufthansa said that it had suspended all flights to and from Beirut until and including June 30 and to and from Tel Aviv and Tehran until and including July 31. Flights to and from Amman and Erbil are canceled until and including July 11. The German airline added that it would also refrain from using airspace of the countries concerned until further notice. Pegasus The Turkish airline said that it had canceled flights to Iran until July 7 and flights to Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan until July 4. Qatar Airways Qatar Airways said that it had temporarily canceled flights to and from Iraq, Iran and Syria. Ryanair Ryanair said that it had canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv and to and from Amman until Oct 25. Tarom Romania's flag carrier said that flights to Tel Aviv will resume starting on June 26 and added that flights to Beirut will restart on the night of June 27-28. Tus Airways The Cypriot airline said it has resumed operations to and from Israel. United Airlines The U.S. carrier said that travel to and from Tel Aviv may be affected between June 13 and August 1. Flights to Dubai between June 18 and July 3 may also be affected. Wizz Air Wizz Air said it had suspended its operations to and from Tel Aviv and Amman until Sept. 15 and was canceling flights to and from the United Arab Emirates until June 30. The Hungarian airline will also avoid overflying Israeli, Iraqi, Iranian and Syrian airspace until further notice. Reporting by Reuters bureaus; compiled by Agnieszka Olenska, Elviira Luoma and Tiago Brandao, Editing by Matt Scuffham, Alison Williams.
Khaleej Times
2 days ago
- Khaleej Times
Dubai–Lucknow Air India Express flight resumes after 3 days of cancellations
After three consecutive days of cancellations, Air India Express finally resumed its Dubai–Lucknow service on Thursday. Flight IX-193 departed Lucknow about 30 minutes late but landed in Dubai on time, offering some respite after days of disruption. Since Monday, flights IX-193 (Lucknow to Dubai) and IX-194 (Dubai to Lucknow) have been grounded without any clear explanation, leaving passengers stranded and scrambling for alternatives. Travellers say the airline has failed to provide timely updates or viable solutions. Some said they were offered either a full refund or a seat on a later flight — options that fall short when the travel is time-sensitive. "What am I supposed to do with a refund when I have already paid for hotels and scheduled appointments?" said an expat whose flight was cancelled. In the past week alone, Air India Express has reportedly cancelled at least 13 flights across key routes, including Delhi, Mumbai, Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah. Passengers across airports have been left to wait for hours, often without any clear communication or support from staff. Flight IX-193 typically departs Lucknow at 9am and reaches Dubai by 11.30am, while IX-194 is scheduled to leave Dubai at 2.35am and arrive in Lucknow by 7.40am. Both flights were cancelled for three straight days before operations resumed Thursday. Air India Express has also come under fire for its handling of previous cancellations. Mariya Fatima, a resident of Ajman, said her Lucknow-bound flight was cancelled on June 16 after passengers had already boarded the aircraft in Dubai. "I was stuck inside the plane for hours through the night," she recalled. "Eventually they told us to disembark as the flight had been cancelled. No one gave a proper reason. I was travelling with my toddler son and had no idea what to do next." In response to Khaleej Times' query, an Air India Express spokesperson said the cancellations were due to external factors beyond the airline's control. "Air India Express has progressively resumed its flights to the Middle East following the reopening of airspaces in the region. Our Dubai–Lucknow flights were earlier cancelled owing to air traffic congestion due to the closure of the airspace over Iran. We provide advance notification to guests on their registered contact details with the airline. In a separate incident, the Dubai–Lucknow flight on June 16 was cancelled due to delayed ATC clearances from Dubai and a subsequent NOTAM at Lucknow Airport. Impacted guests were provided with multiple options, including alternative flights to nearby airports, a full refund on cancellation, or complimentary rescheduling to another date with hotel accommodation and meals. Air India Express regrets the inconvenience caused due to circumstances beyond its control.
