PHL Airport cancellations, delays impacting holiday travel
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Cancellations and delays are a traveler's worst nightmare, especially when it's two days before Christmas. And that's just what some passengers dealt with Friday at Philadelphia International Airport.
A large winter storm that has been moving across the United States created issues. CBS3 Philadelphia counted more than four dozen cancellations and more than one dozen delays Friday morning at PHL.
Many of the flights impacted are to midwest cities, like Chicago, Detroit and Denver.
Travel has been a nightmare for many people in the tri-state area. While expecting the absolute worse with tons of delays and cancellations, what we actually found was a mixed bag.
Maya Rajan lives in Philly but has spent Friday evening trying to get home to her family in Detroit.
"So first it was 5:30 p.m., and then it got delayed to 7 p.m. But at that point, I still stayed at home," Rajan said. "So I didn't leave but then, it was delayed to 8:15 p.m. So I left to come here and as soon as I checked my bag, it delayed to 9:55 p.m. And as I was calling my family, it was delayed to 10:55 p.m."
Mackenzie McCall has a flight to Denver.
"On time as of right now but I'm hopeful," McCall said. "I don't want to speak anything into existence."
TSA lines were busy during the early morning hours, but by 7 a.m. travelers were moving right along, getting through in about three to eight minutes.
"We seem to be moving right along," Dawn Ingalls-Harriot said. "No complaints."
CBS Philadelphia spoke to some travelers who made last-minute changes to avoid the storm.
"We were supposed to leave tomorrow, instead we left today," one traveler said.
Another traveler tells us they bought their tickets back in November and the weather isn't something they can control. So they'll be making the best out of it.
And finally, Ray Taylor of Collingswood, New Jersey, is trying to visit family down in Tampa. His flight's been delayed over three hours.
"It's freezing," Taylor said, I just checked the weather app, 12 degrees it says. I was scared earlier of delays."
Of the 1.3 million Philadelphia area residents expected to travel this weekend, 90% are planning to drive to their destination.
The good news is they will pay the lowest gas prices we've seen since October of last year. The bad news, they'll probably be dealing with rainy, foggy, messy conditions on the way.
AAA suggests you check your tires and your battery, and make sure to pack an emergency kit before you hit the road.
If you're headed to the airport to catch a flight, be sure to check the status of your flight on the departure board before you leave. Be sure to get there two hours before for any domestic flight or three hours ahead of time for any international flight.
Whether it's due to preparedness, better-than-expected weather conditions, or some combination of the two and other factors, a holiday travel nightmare seems to have been avoided by most at the Philadelphia International Airport.
