Dec 21, 2007 10:38 pm US/Central
Holiday On Hold: Fog Snags Chicago Flights
200 Flights Canceled; Delays Average 2 Hours; Snow Aftermath Also Causing Headaches on East Coast
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
The race to get home for the holidays is hitting a snag in Chicago and other parts of the country. Some holiday travelers are in a holding pattern at O'Hare International Airport Friday night. The day's dense fog caused numerous cancellations and delays.
The problems continued on Saturday, with a dense fog advisory in place fo the entire Chicago area until noon which will later be supplanted by rain, and finally snow and bitter cold wind. This all comes on one of the busiest travel days of the year.
As of 11:30 a.m. Saturday, delays averaged an hour at O'Hare, and 50 cancellations had been reported, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation. The Federal Aviation Administration said the delays were rising in length.
At Midway International Airport, delays were averaging 30 to 90 minutes as of 11:30 a.m. Saturday, but no flights had been canceled, according to the Aviation Department.
More than 200 flights were canceled Friday because of the weather, sending many passengers scrambling to book alternative flights. Some were told they won't get out until Saturday; others until late Friday night, but believe it or not, many passengers are taking the news in stride.
Maybe it was the holiday spirit, or just the fact that they're heading home for a few days, but passengers seemed a little jollier than normal when they got bad news.
"So far it's been good," said holiday traveler Monique Jacobson. "The boys are behaving so we're good."
"We're actually happy that it's not as crowded as we thought it would be here," traveler Mary Kelly said.
That might be because the cancellations sent many of the 230,000 passengers who were expected to fly out of O'Hare Friday home. Those who stuck it out faced delays of up to two hours, but most of them decided to make the best of it.
"I guess we're going to eat dinner and hopefully they'll fall asleep while we wait," Jacobson said.
"We're going to go to the American Airlines club and just hang out for a little bit and get a Coke," said traveler Allan Goldstein.
For some eager to get home though, the extra wait was holiday damper.
"My flight's supposed to be at 8 o'clock, and they said it will be at 11:46, so it's almost four hours delayed, and they are not sure the flight is going to be on time or not, so I'm just waiting to see," said Rekshan Pedamuthevi.
And unfortunately, airport officials warn the waiting could continue Saturday.
"We hope that it won't get any worse, but we always suggests that passengers call ahead or check the airline Web sites to find the status," said Department of Aviation spokesperson Karen Pride.
The National Weather Service has issued a dense fog advisory for the Chicago area and most of the rest of Illinois, as well as parts of other states. They warn that visibility will be reduced to 0.25 miles, or one city block, in many areas.
Visibility will become worse as mild, moist air enters the area and snow melts, creating more fog. If driving, the National Weather Service says slow down.
To make matters worse, flights are also troubled on the East Coast The latest wintry snowstorm has moved out of the Northeast, but not before wreaking some havoc with holiday travel out of Boston.
A Massport spokesman says dozens of arriving or departing flights have been canceled at Logan International Airport. He says minor delays are expected on other flights.
More than 150 flights were canceled at Logan airport Thursday.
Saturday is expected to be the busiest day of the holiday season at O'Hare and Midway airports, so keep the limit on carry-on liquids in mind and be sure not to wrap gifts. Security regulations prohibit people from carrying wrapped packages through the security screening.
CBS 2's Mai Martinez and the Associated Press contributed to this report.cbs2chicago.com's Most Popular Pages 
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