Air travel braces for east coast storm shutdown

Reuters: Airlines cancelled nearly 8,000 weekend flights as Hurricane Irene swept up the U.S. east coast toward New York, forcing carriers to move planes to safer areas and halting services at the busiest U.S. hub.

The disruption was part of an extraordinary pre-emptive effort by business and governments to limit public exposure to Irene’s fury by shutting down heavily travelled transportation networks.

Subway and bus systems and passenger rail services also planned to halt service. Motorists were urged to stay off roads and key bridges would close if hurricane winds exceeded certain speeds.

As authorities from Washington to Boston prepared for ferocious winds, torrential rain and flooding, major airlines advised passengers to reconsider travel plans.

The three major New York-area airports said late on Friday they would halt domestic and overseas arrivals at noon EDT on Saturday. Departures were still planned until further notice, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Big airlines had already cancelled much of their New York schedules into Monday.

“We are laying in supplies, things like tarps to throw over computers and electronics should we shut down the terminals, and plywood so that if there is any glass damage we can move quickly to secure those areas,” said Ed Martelle, a spokesman for American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp.

The Northeast is the most congested area of U.S. air space, with John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports in New York and Newark in New Jersey handling nearly 100 million domestic and international passengers annually. Disruptions in the region ripple throughout the country and affect international flights.

The worst of the storm is expected to hit the mid-Atlantic region late on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. Repositioning planes again and restarting service can take time and will lead to more cancellations and delays on Monday.

Most carriers were expected to shut down operations for about 24 hours, airlines and transportation officials said.