Snow Delays: Which Airlines are More Likely to Ground You
In Scott McCartney’s WSJ Middle Seat column this week, he describes how some airlines are more effective at getting you on your way despite inclement weather.
The article Which Airline to Fly During a Snow Storm says “An analysis of airline cancellations at East Coast airports during the severe snow storm 10 days ago shows the airlines’ differing attitudes in action, and offers travelers a chance to make better decisions about which airline they’d prefer when storms threaten travel.”
According to the article, American and United are more prone to cancel flights due to snow, and JetBlue and Continental Airlines will work harder to get their flights into the air.
“We believe customers want to get where they’re going even if it’s very late, so we fly as much as we can,” said JetBlue spokesman Bryan Baldwin.
The downside is that you are more likely to be diverted if your plane does depart.
On Sunday, not all the flights launched by JetBlue and Continental during the storm made it as scheduled. Nine JetBlue flights diverted to airports like Rochester, Syracuse and Buffalo in New York before making it to JFK late Sunday. About 20 Continental flights inbound from Europe had to divert to Montreal, Cleveland, Syracuse and Gander, Newfoundland.
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
As a GA pilot, I am usually happy to stay put during severe weather.
Some airlines might try harder to get their birds into the air, but they are also incurring greater risks. That sort of can-do attitude might be a great selling point to the flying public, but it makes me wonder whether airline management is incubating an institutional sense of get-there-itis into its pilots. That’s the sort of mindset that can and does lead to tragic air accidents.
Sometimes the wisest decision is not to fly into bad weather.
Leave a Comment