Severe weather causes grounding at Atlanta, Houston and Charlotte airports

A series of severe storms that hit the Midwest and Southeast Friday and Saturday created a nightmare for thousands of travelers. The storms caused layovers at airports in Atlanta, Houston and Charlotte, causing hundreds of flights to be delayed or diverted.

More than 100 flights were canceled Saturday, with Houston the hardest hit. Operations largely resumed later that night, but another storm expected early this week could have significant impacts.

Diversions in Atlanta

According to WSB, the local ABC affiliate in Atlanta, major delays occurred Friday night at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL). U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said up to eight international flights originally departing from the airport had to be diverted to other airports in the area due to severe weather and a layover.

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The order was lifted when conditions improved, allowing flights to land at ATL again. However, because all of the diverted flights were allowed to land at roughly the same time, customs officials were faced with an influx of passengers and it would take until 1 a.m. Saturday to process all of the travelers.

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According to FlightAware, 701 flights were delayed Friday at the world’s busiest airport. Delta Air Lines, ATL’s largest operator, was the hardest hit, with 460 delays. Southwest Airlines was second, with 59 delays. Fortunately, only eight flights were canceled. Saturday saw more cancellations than Friday, but fewer delays. ATL saw a total of 635 delays, more than half of them Delta. 10 flights were canceled.

Hurricane Threat in Houston

The grounding at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) on Saturday contributed to more than 600 flight disruptions. According to ABC 13 Eyewitness News, the grounding went into effect at 3:37 p.m. local time and lasted until 5 p.m. A total of 556 delays and 79 cancellations were recorded at IAH. United Airlines, the airport’s largest carrier, delayed 294 flights and canceled nine. Mesa Airlines, CommuteAir and SkyWest Airlines, which all operate under the regional United Express brand, recorded 71, 49 and 28 delays, respectively. Between the three airlines, there were 63 cancellations.

Photo: Federal Aviation Administration

The IAH can brace for more air strikes, as rain showers are forecast for most of this week. The region is under a tropical storm warning, as Tropical Storm Beryl is expected to strengthen in the Gulf and hit the Texas coast Monday as a Category 1 hurricane. As of 10 p.m. Saturday, the storm was located about 300 miles southeast of Corpus Christi and moving northwest at 13 miles per hour, with maximum sustained winds of 60 miles per hour (mph). Maximum sustained winds of 75 mph are expected at landfall Monday at 7 a.m.

Flooding in Charlotte

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) also experienced a flight stoppage Saturday, but it was short-lived, according to local ABC affiliate WSOC. The flight stoppage was issued in the evening and was supposed to be in effect until at least 7:45 p.m., but was lifted just before 7:30 p.m. Scattered thunderstorms moved through the area, leaving Mecklenburg and Union counties under flood advisories.

The airport recorded 580 flight delays and 28 cancellations on Saturday.

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