More Than 1,000 Flight Disruptions Strand Travelers at DFW and Love Field After Weekend Storm Ravages Dallas

DFW International Airport saw more than 1,000 flights disrupted Sunday after storms blew through Dallas-Fort Worth knocking out power to hundreds of thousands and leading to at least one death.As the storm brought winds as powerful as 70 mph to the metroplex, DFW Airport saw 756 flight delays and 515 cancellations Sunday, according to FlightAware. DFW Airport topped the site's list of airports with the most disruptions Monday morning.Fort Worth-based American Airlines cancelled or delayed more than half of its flights Sunday, according to data from FlightAware. American's regional carrier Mesa Airlines had the next most disruptions totaling 192 cancellations and 103 delays.An American Airlines spokesperson said the airline is in "recovery mode" today after the inclement weather disrupted weekend flights. The airline has cancelled about 100 flights at DFW Airport Monday, down from 260 cancellations Sunday.DFW Airport resumed normal operations Monday, according to airport spokesperson Cynthia Vega. The FAA issued a ground stop Sunday that diverted roughly 40 flights to other airports and allowed the airport to manage traffic, Vega said.The airport's customer experience teams also worked to make sure travelers were as comfortable as possible given the delays. Concessions stands also stayed open late to accommodate stranded travelers.Dallas Love Field Airport lost power briefly Sunday but is also resuming normal operations Monday, according to a spokesperson. The airport saw 162 delays and 66 cancelations Sunday, according to FlightAware data. Southwest Airlines was the largest carrier impacted.Southwest Airlines was not immediately available for comment Monday."As soon as the storm passed, our operations folks got out their and inspected the runways and were able to get them back open," said Love Field Communications Manager Chris Perry, "Once they were able to determine they were safe, airlines were able to resume some operations yesterday.Airport officials recommend travelers contact the airlines they're traveling on to be sure they have the most up-to-date flight information.Ben Colella was traveling home to Los Angeles on American Airlines after a weekend in Dallas when his flight was delayed well into the night and eventually cancelled. Colella was at DFW Airport until 1 a.m. Colella said he tried to book himself a hotel room, but that all the hotels he tried around the airport were completely booked up."I managed to find one room. [The hotel's] rooms were full, but they managed to clean one for me," Colella said. He managed to get into his room around 3 a.m. and rebooked a flight on Alaska Airlines for Monday afternoon.."I'm just surprised that a two-hour storm would back everything up like that," Colella said.Colella said he noticed airline staff under stress but that employees at both airports he visited were working hard to accommodate travelers."People were just so sympathetic with each other. People of all different types of cultures and nationalities were all friends," Colella said.  Continue reading...