Weather forces flight delays
Things didn't run all that smoothly for the nation's air carriers Monday, and weather forecasts make delays likely as the holiday week progresses.
Traffic to O'Hare International Airport was affected by low clouds, with delays running more than two hours.
Meteorologists in the Midwest eyed weather fronts that could bring an onslaught of snow and cold that could snarl air traffic at O'Hare. Rain was expected to turn to wet snow Wednesday night, just before thousands board flights out of town or pass through one of the nation's busiest travel hubs.
Meanwhile, a software problem disrupted radio communications at both Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport control towers, while fog, snow and wind threatened to hamper one of the busiest travel holidays of the year elsewhere.
Flights in and out of Dallas were delayed by as much as an hour. Airport spokesman Ken Capps said in an e-mail the problems was repaired at both towers after about 30 minutes.
The outage, at about 7 a.m., affected both incoming and outgoing flights, according to the Federal Aviation Administration's Air Traffic Control System Command Center. The FAA declared a "ground stop," which cuts incoming flights by holding planes on the ground at their point of departure.
In California, thick fog shut down runways at Burbank's Bob Hope Airport, and poor visibility prevented 12 planes from landing Sunday night for a Monday morning turnaround, leaving scores of passengers stranded, airport spokesman Victor Gill said.
FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said several flights also were diverted from Santa Monica Airport, and some flights were delayed at Los Angeles International Airport and San Diego International Airport, but things returned to normal later in the morning.
In Atlanta, fog reduced visibility across the metro area to a quarter-mile and delayed flights by as much as 30 minutes during the morning rush.
The FAA said flights bound for New York's LaGuardia International Airport experienced delays of more than an hour. Winds at LaGuardia gusted to as much as 31 mph Monday, according to the National Weather Service.
Weather and wind also were cited for delays in Newark, N.J., and Philadelphia.
Flights to New York's three major airports were also delayed by wet weather, wind and low clouds.
Flights to LaGuardia Airport were delayed an average of 1 hour, 31 minutes as of 4:37 p.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
Arrivals at Newark Liberty International Airport were delayed by 1 hour, 48 minutes, on average, while those at John F. Kennedy International Airport were delayed about 54 minutes, the FAA said .
At San Francisco International Airport, arrivals were delayed an aver age of 1 hour, 43 minutes due to runway maintenance, the FAA's Web site showed.
Flights to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport were delayed earlier Monday after a circuit card failed, preventing air-traffic controllers from communicating with other FAA facilities.
Over the 12-day travel period that began Nov. 16, about 27 million people will fly on U.S. airlines, an increase of 4 percent over last year, according to the Air Transport Association. On each of the busiest days, Wednesday, Sunday and Monday, more than 2.5 million will fly, the Washington-based group said.
The Bush administration last week announced steps, including a plan to open up military airspace, to help alleviate delays during the Thanksgiving crush. In addition, the FAA started up a Web site Monday to help travelers find information on delays at their departure and destination airports.