Thunderstorms in Florida over the weekend caused the cancellation of nearly 2,000 flights on Saturday and roughly another 1,650 cancellations on Sunday, according to FlightAware, as travelers were left scrambling with how to get to their destination.
In total, there were 5,860 flights delayed within, into, or out of the United States on Sunday. 27% of flights from Miami International were delayed, and 33% from Orlando International faced the same issues.
Travelers of Southwest Airlines saw the most delays on Sunday with 1,458 or 38% of their flights. Southwest had to cancel 400 flights (10%) in total, the most among major airlines.
"With widespread cancellations in the midst of a busy travel season, hotel rooms were unavailable in a few cities, and late day Crew timeouts in those cities meant that some Crew Members were left without rooms," Southwest said in a note to crews on Sunday, obtained by CNBC. "We take that shortfall seriously and are working to follow up with affected crew members."
JetBlue and Spirit Airlines weren't far behind in the percentage of flights they had to delay or cancel. There were 457 delays (42%) and 373 cancellations (34%) on JetBlue on Sunday, while Spirit Airlines had to delay 234 (29%) of their flights and cancel an additional 308 flights (37%).
"Severe weather in the Southeast and multiple air traffic control delay programs have created significant impacts on the industry," a JetBlue spokesperson said in an email, according to the Associated Press. "Today's cancellations will help us reset our operation and safely move our crews and aircraft back in to position."
American Airlines was forced to delay 583 flights (18%) on Sunday, but only had to cancel 271 flight, just 8% in all. There were more than 65,000 customers of American Airlines, including regional airlines, that were affected by these delays and cancellations, according to an internal tally seen by CNBC.
“Yesterday’s weather in around Florida and resulting [air traffic control] initiatives impacted our operations with most northbound and southbound routes through and to Florida affected," American Ailines said in a statement. "We're recovering from those disruptions today."
Delta Air Lines did not struggle with flight cancellations, as they only had to call of 41 flights, but they did have to delay 625 flights (21%) on Sunday.
It's tough for travelers to fully prepare for their flights to be delayed or cancelled, especially for the large number of college students currently traveling for spring breaks across the country.
According to a recent study, Newark Liberty International Airport and LaGuardia Airport had the most delays in the country. 75.71% and 77.48%, respectively, of flights were expected to arrive on-time, according to Travel and Leisure.
Luckily as of Monday, there have only been 640 flights in the U.S. cancelled, while about 2,000 have dealt with delays. Weather is just as unpredictable as a flight delay, so anything could change and mess up your trip. Hopefully there's an open seat and a good food option in the airport if you're forced to wait.
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