Labor Day flight cancellations: Nearly 1,500 as Hurricane Dorian approaches East Coast

Travel on Labor Day, already a crazy day at airports across the country as travelers head home from the last hurrah of summer, is causing more headaches this year.

Airlines canceled  nearly 1,500 Monday flights within, into, or out of the United States because of Hurricane Dorian as of 11:30 p.m. Eastern, according to flight tracker FlightAware.

Florida airports accounted for the bulk of the cancellations, with Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport topping the list after the airport announced plans to close at noon Monday. According to FlightAware, there were 549 flight cancellations to and from Fort Lauderdale, home to big operations for Southwest, Spirit and JetBlue.

Orlando International Airport canceled 317 flights even though the airport rescinded plans to be closed Monday after the hurricane’s path shifted. Airlines had already canceled flights and, for the most part, have not reinstated them. 

And the Orlando cancellations will continue: The airport announced Monday afternoon it will cease commercial operations Tuesday at 2 a.m.

Eighty-nine flights to and from Palm Beach International Airport were canceled after the airport announced Sunday it would halt operations on Monday. An additional 97 flights to and from Miami International were canceled, according to FlightAware. 

Florida-based Spirit airlines canceled the most Monday flights, with 271. Spirit acknowledged long wait times to reach the airline via its reservations center and on Twitter and Facebook, and it added two toll-free lines, one in English and one in Spanish, to help travelers. 

Major cancellations also hit JetBlue and Southwest, with 238 and 152 respectively, according to FlightAware.

Cancellations may mount as the storm’s path along the East Coast becomes more clear and cancellations are likely to spill beyond the holiday and beyond Florida, depending on where Dorian goes after pummeling the Bahamas. Charlotte, North Carolina, for example, is a big hub for American Airlines. As of 11:30 p.m. Eastern there were 63 flights canceled to and from Charlotte.

Airlines have been allowing travelers who want to get out of the storm’s path to change their flights without penalty, and have expanded the waivers to more airports as the hurricane has progressed. Policies and travel dates vary by carrier and destination.

On Sunday, American added eight coastal airports in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina to its travel alert. It is good for travelers holding tickets for travel through Sept. 6. The airports include those in Charleston, Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia.

Some travelers are taking the hurricane-related holiday travel trouble in stride.

Lisa Donnelly, who was flying back to the United Kingdom from Orlando on Sunday, had a miserable travel day on the way to Florida but was thrilled to find shorter lines at the new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney World.

“We only had to wait five minutes for each ride,” she said.

Michael Chavers, who arrived in Orlando on a flight from Pittsburgh, also had one destination in mind.

“We don’t care about hurricanes,” he said. “We’re going to Disney.” 

The latest airline waivers for Hurricane Dorian

• American Airlines
• United Airlines
• Delta Air Lines
• Southwest Airlines
• JetBlue Airways
• Spirit Airlines
• Allegiant Air
• Frontier Airlines

Contributing: Jessica Rodriguez, Naples (Fla.) Daily News.