OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) – Passengers at Omaha's Eppley Airfield spent hours waiting only to have rebooked flights canceled as bad weather and a partial government shutdown create widespread travel disruptions.
- Travelers at Omaha's Eppley Airfield are facing widespread flight cancellations and delays due to bad weather and a partial government shutdown impacting TSA staffing.
- Passengers report spending hours at the airport only to have rebooked flights canceled again, with some forced to split up from travel companions or abandon vacation plans entirely.
- Some travelers drove from Sioux Falls to catch connecting flights to Chicago, only to have those flights canceled upon arriving in Omaha.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Travelers at Omaha's Eppley Airfield were scrambling to rebook canceled and delayed flights as a combination of bad weather and a partial government shutdown snarls air travel across the country.
KMTV spoke with passengers who spent hours in the airport, only to have their rebooked flights canceled as well.
Madison Doughty spent most of Sunday dealing with delays as he tried to get to Scottsdale.
"We got delayed, then we boarded, got deplaned. They just kept delaying out flights until about 12:45 then they rebooked us to this morning," Doughty said.
Because so many travelers were experiencing the same problems, Doughty and his wife had to be booked on two separate planes. While she got on her flight, his was delayed again.
"My wife is going to arrive to our destination but no idea when I am going to get there," Doughty said.
"Some of my friends got on a plane and immediately had to get back off," Anita Lee said.
It's not just bad weather making flyers miserable. Airports across the country are experiencing delays as hundreds of TSA agents, who aren't receiving full pay because of the partial government shutdown, call out.
"Long waits on the phone, got here and found out our Denver Aspen leg was canceled," David Lessor said.
At Eppley, travelers came early, prepared for long lines — but most didn't even make it to security before their flights were canceled.
"We got here like five hours early because of the TSA strike and we find out through our phones flights are getting cancelled," Trevor and Elliot said.
Spring breakers like Trevor and Elliot were hoping to catch a flight to warmer weather but were stuck waiting in the airport.
"Our flight to Orlando got canceled through Chicago so we would have to stay down there for two days, so now we are talking to the airlines trying to get it figured out," Trevor and Elliot said.
Because so many people had flights canceled and delayed, some travelers said they had to scratch their vacation plans entirely.
"I think we are going to try to make a day of it here in Omaha then go home and go back to work," one traveler said.
KMTV lso spoke with others who told said they had traveled from Sioux Falls to catch flights to Chicago, only to have those flights canceledwhen they arrived in Omaha.
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