Delta canceled almost 900 flights Monday as Tropical Storm Irma continued its passage towards its hub, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
That’s bad news for many other airlines, too, as Hatsfield-Jackson is the most heavily trafficked airport on the planet.
In fact, the number of cancellations nationwide since Irma arrived in the Caribbean is now more than 13,100 and counting.
This is just part of the struggle that the tourism industry faces in the southern US states, in the wake of a storm that has seen cities trashed, airports affected by tornadoes and Disney World shuttered.
Delta canceled 900 flights on Monday as its hub – Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta airport (pictured in July) – faced heavy crosswinds thanks to Tropical Storm Irma, which is on its way
Passengers were left waiting in the airport (pictured) as other flights were delayed. In total Monday there were more than 4,300 cancellations and almost 12,000 delays across the US
Hurricane Irma will cross into Georgia on Monday, bringing heavy wind and rain to the state. There are concerns that crosswinds will make it dangerous for planes to land
Delta announced its Atlanta cancellations on Monday, citing dangerous north-south winds that threatened the safety of any planes trying to land on Atlanta’s east-west runways.
Crosswinds of up to 40mph can be managed, but Irma – now downgraded from hurricane status as it breaks up over land – is expected to push harder than that.
It also planned 15 cancellations on Tuesday.
Also logging substantial cancellations on Monday were Southwest with 761, and American with 741. Both are headquartered in Hurricane-Harvey-stricken Texas.
Southwest told USA Today at least 65 Atlanta flights and 10 in Birmingham had already been canceled, but that it hoped ‘to resume normal operations by Tuesday’ at those airports.
In total, at least 4,364 planes across all airlines were canceled for Monday over the whole of the US, with a total of 1,449 already canceled for Tuesday.
Those figures were counted up by Flight Aware, which also noted the total number of delays for Monday at 11,892 as of 1:30pm. The figure continues to rise.
Schools and most employees were off in Atlanta today (pictured) as the city hunkered down ahead of the storm. Southwest and American also canceled more than 700 Atlanta flights each
This image from FlightAware shows how few planes are flying in the areas affected – or to be affected – by Irma, stretching up from Cuba to Georgia
In total, 100 airlines said that they would drop at least one flight from Hatsfield-Jackson on Monday.
However, the airport said that it would remain open for operations, and would monitor air conditions with the FAA.
Also suffering cancellations is Charlotte, North Carolina, where 300 American Airlines flights were dropped amid similar concerns over strong winds.
And of course, disruption continued throughout Florida, in the wake of Irma’s assault on Sunday.
Miami International Airport announced that it would remain closed on Monday while inspectors were ‘assessing water damage at all concourses, fallen trees, airfield, fuel & other damages,’ airport director Emilio Gonzalez tweeted.
It’s not yet confirmed whether it will reopen on Tuesday. If it does, American may still hang back on reopening its flights.
An airline spokesman said that depended on whether federal aviation officials gave the go-ahead, and whether security screeners and airport vendors could return to work.
Cancellations were also rife elsewhere, as Miami airport (pictured September 8) remained closed on Monday, as did Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood and Key West airports
Miami International Airport is seen with empty runways on Monday. Damage at all three locations is being assessed. MIA and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood may reopen Tuesday
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport announced that it would also be closed to passengers throughout Monday.
It said that it is ‘expected to resume operations on Tuesday, September 12, at 4am.’
And Key West International Airport, which suspended its operations indefinitely on Thursday, is still closed ‘until further notice’.
Flight Radar 24, which tracks every plane in the sky, showed notably blank skies above Florida and its northern neighbors, as of noon on Monday.
Travel woes are just a small part of the severe hit that Florida’s tourism has taken during Irma’s rampage up the state.
Some of the state’s biggest attractions have announced temporary closures, including amusement park giants Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Universal Studios, Legoland and Sea World, which all planned to close through Monday.
Meanwhile, many cruise ships that make Miami their home port or a port of call have had to move ships out of the area and revise schedules.
Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean are two around 20 lines that sail to and from Miami. Both are now holding back until they know how things will progress in the area.
Disney canceled the Monday sailing of one of its cruise ships and said it is assessing future sailings, which stop throughout the Caribbean and in the Bahamas.
Disney World in Florida was also closed due to the storms. Florida’s main source of income is tourism, and the damage done by the storm may impact future earnings
A lighter time was had on the Norwegian Escape, which has 4,000 passengers on a ‘cruise to nowhere,’ enjoying free food and drink until a safe landing can be made in the US.
‘We said to guests that we cannot confirm when or where you’ll be coming back, but obviously we’ll make every effort to return the ship to port as soon as it’s safe to do so,’ said Norwegian Cruise Line spokeswoman Vanessa Picariello.
‘We’re making every effort to have at least one port of call,’ Picariello said. ‘If not, it will be a cruise to nowhere and everyone will have a good time.’
As of Monday, the ship was off Cozumel, Mexico.
Florida is one of the world’s top tourism destinations. Last year nearly 113 million people visited the state, a new record, and spent $109 billion, state officials said earlier this year.
The first half of 2017 was on track to beat that record pace, officials said.
The damage Irma’s winds and storm surges have done to Florida’s 660 miles of beaches and their buildings will be critical to how quickly the state’s ‘s number-one industry recovers.
The Norwegian Escape, pictured above in 2015, offered shelter to passengers with nowhere to go once Hurricane Irma hit Florida; it is now sailing off the coast of Mexico