If you are hoping to get somewhere seamlessly, avoid these Florida airports this Spring. According to TSA projections, April air travel could exceed pre-pandemic levels. What this does is increase the stress on airports that are already struggling to provide a smooth travel experience to their passengers.
AirHelp, is an air passenger rights company, that collected data on all of the flight disruptions that occurred March. The results aren't good for Florida. Three of the top five worst airports for flight disruptions are in the Sunshine State. Hawaii took up the other two spots. Officials speculate those poor performances are because of the increased traffic during spring break and baseball spring training. Baseball travel might be over, however, there is some lingering spring break travel.
Airports to avoid this spring
- #5 Palm Beach International (PBI)
- #4 Orlando International (MCO)
- #3 Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International (FLL)
- #2 Lihu Airport in Hawaii (LIH)
- #1 Kahului Airport, also in Hawaii (LIH)
I have always had good experiences flying out of Fort Lauderdale. The airport is pretty easy to navigate and it's not as far to drive as Miami. Sometimes I find flight deals that are worth the drive across Alligator Alley. However, the rains this week were not good for the airport. In fact, they give a whole new meaning to getting "stranded" at the airport. Check this out:
It’s Not Just The Airport, Fort Lauderdale is Flooded
Heavy rains have been battering the South East coast of Florida. The big news yesterday was the Fort Lauderdale Airport was forced to close. The airport will remain closed at least until noon on Thursday. Many of the roads around the airport are still flooded. Flights have been diverted to Miami.
Estimates have the rainfall totals of 22.5" of rain in 7 hours (3 to 10 pm) at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
The downtown Fort Lauderdale area has also been heavily affected. Countless cars are stranded. Many neighborhoods are flooded and a tornado warning was issued last night. The mess continued into Thursday, as reported by CBS News "The flooding prompted Broward County public schools to cancel classes and all activities on Thursday because of flooding."
So what happened in Fort Lauderdale?
A storm cell parked over the are and would not move. It just stayed there. Instead of the usual storms sweeping through the area, this one decided to hang over the Dania Beach area. They were buried with over 20 inches of rain in a short time. Here's some of the video and pictures that they are waking up to today as they try to go about their daily routine in South Florida.
