Holiday travel plans were disrupted for some at Eppley Airfield on Monday as winter weather caused flight delays and cancellations for travelers flying in and out of Omaha.
Utah Cokes was traveling from Vancouver to Omaha for work when winter weather at his connecting hub airport derailed his original itinerary.
"I had to connect through Chicago and we were on the tarmac there for probably 45 to 50 minutes before we were able to take off here. So lots of snow and lots of delays," Cokes said.
Melissa Meier faced even more complications while trying to reach New Zealand for a presentation. Technology glitches combined with weather delays created a perfect storm of travel chaos.
"It only took me five minutes to check in, and then I waited and then I was on, getting ready to load and then I went back 3 times because of the error and then the plane just couldn't wait on me anymore, so then the plane took off. Then they tried to find me another plane in Chicago but it was delayed," Meier said.
The airline rebooked Meier on a Tuesday morning flight, but she worries additional delays could affect her entire family's travel plans.
"I just want to try to get here early so our whole family doesn't have a delay because it's a long way to travel, because every leg after that basically is messed up because this one leg something happened to it," Meier said.
Flight status boards at Eppley showed multiple arrivals running hours behind schedule. Despite the frustrations, both travelers say they've learned to build extra time into their holiday travel plans and pack patience along with their luggage.
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