Misery Map Shows Chaos of Flight Cancellations Across East Coast

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A "misery map" from the aviation-tracking website FlightAware is providing a real-time visual snapshot of the disruptions piling up at airports across the East Coast as winter storm Hernando brings heavy snow. More than 9,000 flights have been canceled since Sunday, with the Northeast bearing the brunt of the storm's impact. The map shows where the chaos is concentrated, with nearly every flight from Philadelphia to Boston canceled and over half of the daily departures from Washington, D.C.-area airports scrapped.

Why it matters

The widespread flight cancellations and disruptions caused by the snowstorm are stranding travelers across the region, with the ripple effects felt throughout the national air travel network. The situation highlights the vulnerabilities of the aviation system to extreme weather events and the challenges airlines and airports face in quickly recovering operations after major storms.

The details

FlightAware's Misery Map is usually only activated to show airports experiencing significant enough disruptions. Data from Cirium shows that on Monday, about 20% of the roughly 25,000 scheduled U.S. flights did not take off, compared to just 1% on a typical day. The situation was similar on Sunday. Airports in the Northeast have been hit the hardest, with nearly every flight from Philadelphia to Boston canceled and more than half of the daily departures from Washington, D.C.-area airports scrapped, mostly from Reagan National Airport. Even after the snow stops, it could take airlines days to get back on schedule as they deal with issues like clearing snow from runways and taxiways, de-icing planes, and getting staff to the airports.

• Since Sunday, over 9,000 flights have been canceled across the U.S.
• On Monday, about 20% of the roughly 25,000 scheduled U.S. flights did not take off, compared to 1% on a typical day.

What’s next

Even after the snow stops, it could take airlines days to get back on schedule as they deal with issues like clearing snow from runways and taxiways, de-icing planes, and getting staff to the airports.