USA Today - Thousands of flights canceled across East, DC airport halts flights amid heavy ...

New York City

Last update: 8:01 p.m. ET. 

Commercial air traffic was halted at two Washington area airports on Saturday and more than a thousand flights had been canceled by noon ET as an intense December snow storm moved into the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast.

The Federal Aviation Administration said on its website flights were not likely to resume at either Washington National or Baltimore/Washington airports until Sunday morning, at the earliest. Flights were never officially halted at Washington's other airport -- Dulles -- very few flights actually operated there Saturday.

Elsewhere, even where flights were flying, service was spotty at a number of airports. Many airlines "proactively" canceled hundreds flights as the storm neared. United and Delta each had canceled more than the 500 flights each by noon ET, according to The Weather Channel. The Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia airports were the hardest hit, as of 12:30 p.m. ET.

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"Delta reportedly canceled all flights in and out of Washington D.C., and American Airlines canceled its D.C., Baltimore and Philadelphia flights," according to MarketWatch.com.

One bright spot: The New York City airports -- Newark, New York JFK and New York LaGuardia -- did not see the worst of the wintry weather until Saturday evening, meaning the effect on the airports was relatively light. Conditions there remained relatively calm into Saturday night, likely sparing New York fliers any widespread problems until Sunday, when heavy snow is forecast for the area.

As for flight delays, many airports in the region showed only minimal delays, though that that's largely because so many flights were canceled and did not add to a potential weather backlog.

The biggest wave of cancellations appeared to come in Washington and Baltimore, where some of the storm's biggest accumulations were predicted.

In addition to American and Delta, AirTran and Virgin America were among the other carriers axing Saturday's entire flight schedule at the Washington and Baltimore airports.

United, the top carrier in the D.C. area, canceled nearly all of its flights that were scheduled to fly before 7 p.m. ET to or from the city's three airports: Washington Dulles, Washington National and Baltimore/Washington. Dulles is a major hub for United, meaning the cancellations would have a broad impact.

United also canceled flights in advance to and from Philadelphia, New York, and Newark. 

As for affected customers, United spokesman Rahsaan Johnson tells Today in the Sky: "We have agents calling customers who gave us their phone numbers to confirm new reservations, but now is the time during which customers can get proactive. Ticketed customers should first visit united.com, where they can confirm the status of the flight on which they are ticketed, confirm that they have already been rebooked to the first available flight, or change their reservations.  Customers unable for whatever reason to accomplish what they need online should call United Reservations at 1-800-UNITED-1."

The Metro Washington Airports Authority echoed the bad news for fliers,  advising travelers via its website that "most of today's flights have been canceled by the airlines. Very few flights are currently scheduled to operate.  Please check directly with your airline's website to inquire about your flight before coming to the airport." The Authority operates both Dulles and National airports. 

"It's going to be very challenging for people who weren't able to get out today to rebook on flights this week," Hamilton told The Associated Press.

The Baltimore Sun writes "more than 150 departing flights have been canceled (at BWI), according to FlightStats.com, most of those to destinations along the East Coast and in the Midwest. … Southwest Airlines, the leading carrier at BWI, canceled a majority of its flights to/from BWI up until 2 p.m., when they will reassess the weather."

TheNew York Times writes "earlier on Saturday morning at Reagan National, (airports spokeswoman Tara) Hamilton said, 'we've only had 14 operations in and out, and usually, we would have about 500 today.' At Dulles, she said, only 14 flights have come in and out (most international) on a day that there would normally be more than 700 flights."

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