Airlines in the United States have canceled more than 1,600 flights and counting on Friday as a major winter storm is set to freeze the Midwest.
At least 1,627 flights were canceled and 2,220 delayed as of 9:12 a.m. ET, according to the flight tracking website FlightAware.
“We expect some operational challenges due to the weather in the Midwest today and potentially tomorrow due to the winter weather in the region,” Delta Air Lines told Reuters.
The Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday warned that clouds, snow and windforce may delay flights at certain airports.
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Southwest led the list of cancelations with 355 canceled flights, followed by SkyWest Airlines with 269 and United Airlines with 258.
“Our operations team continues to monitor weather developments across the Midwest and adjust our schedule accordingly,” United told FOX Business in a statement. “Customers may visit united.com to check their flight status and view the latest information. Additionally, we currently have waivers in place for customers traveling to, from or through impacted cities in the region.”
United has also canceled some flights through Saturday as it awaits regulatory approvals to resume operating Boeing’s 737 MAX 9 jets in the country.
The FAA on Thursday launched a formal investigation into 737 MAX 9 planes after a cabin panel blew off an Alaska Airlines flight last week in mid-air, forcing an emergency landing.
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Winter weather alerts, including Blizzard Warnings, are in effect from the Plains to the Midwest ahead of a major winter storm which is forecast to hit cities including Chicago and Milwaukee with heavy snow and strong winds, FOX Weather reports.
The new round of winter weather comes after a deadly storm dropped nearly a foot of snow and caused whiteout conditions in parts of the central U.S. this week.
Snow and ice are expected to create dangerous conditions that will make road travel nearly impossible north of Interstate 80, according to FOX Weather.
Significant flight delays and cancelations are anticipated at airports such as Quad City International Airport (MLI), Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), General Mitchell International Airport (MKE) and Green Bay Austin Straubel International Airport (GRB).
“American Airlines is monitoring the impact of Winter Storm Gerri and has issued a travel alert allowing customers whose travel plans are affected to rebook without change fees,” American Airlines said. “Customers can reschedule their travel on aa.com or by contacting Reservations at 800-433-7300 in the United States or Canada. American will continue tracking this winter weather with our customers’ and team members’ safety top of mind.”
The FOX Forecast Center says an increasingly sharp pressure gradient will develop between the strengthening winter storm and a building area of arctic air, leading to strong winds and the possibility of blizzard conditions.
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“We’re going to see winds here cranking to 45 to 50 mph, along with heavily falling snow,” said FOX Weather meteorologist Bob Van Dillen.
The National Weather Service has issued winter weather alerts affecting millions of Americans from the Plains to the Midwest and Great Lakes region.
Blizzard Warnings are in effect across seven states, including most counties across Iowa, which will hold the first presidential primary contest of the 2024 election on Monday.
Life-threatening conditions are forecast in areas with a Blizzard Warning, including wind gusts up to 45 mph and visibilities less than a quarter mile, according to FOX Weather.
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Cities like Chicago and Des Moines, Iowa are forecast to receive between five and eight inches of snow.
Cities in Wisconsin, including Green Bay, Milwaukee and Sturgeon Bay, could see between 12 and 18 inches of snowfall.
On top of the heavy snowfall, frigid air moving into the U.S. from Canada will cause a “flash freeze” that could send temperatures plummeting as low as -42 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and -38 in Des Moines.
FOX Weather’s Steven Yablonski and Andrew Wulfeck and Reuters contributed to this report.