The traffic chaos began Tuesday morning when a storm with wind gusts of more than 85 mph hit the airport and the area.
DALLAS — For much of this week, DFW Airport was filled with frustrated passengers like Kathy Boothman waiting in long customer service lines.
“I feel like crying,” Boothman said. “We were planning to go on a cruise from Seattle for my husband's 70th birthday.”
Instead, she and many others are dealing with canceled and delayed flights that mean they can't reach their final destinations. Boothman and her husband will miss the cruise and will have to rebook for another day.
“A lot of people are being left without their bags and that's not good,” Boothman said.
The traffic chaos began Tuesday morning when a storm with wind gusts of more than 85 mph hit the airport and surrounding areas, and continued as more storms blew in throughout the week.
Bad weather has kept Robert Baxter from returning to his home in Buffalo, New York, for three days.
“It's so frustrating. I just want to go home,” Baxter said. “It feels like I can't get away.”
This has led some, like Fort Worth resident Stinson Jones, to cancel their trips altogether.
“I had no choice but to miss my graduation,” Jones said.
So the proud grandfather canceled his flight to Washington, DC to see his granddaughter perform in a play. To make matters worse, the airline can't seem to find his luggage.
“I'm here right now, standing in another line waiting to see if my stuff is back so I can take it home,” Jones said.
Dallas-Fort Worth Airport was No. 1 in the world for flight delays and cancellations on Thursday, and despite clearer skies on Friday, airlines are still struggling to make up for lost time.
“They told us they didn't have enough flight attendants to make the flight. We heard the same thing from the plane next to us – they didn't have enough flight attendants, they should have pilots,” Boothman said.
Fort Worth-based American Airlines has been hit hardest, saying it is committed to recovery and working to get crews and aircraft back in working order but that it will take time.
