Airlines begin to cancel flights at Philadelphia Int'l Airport ahead of storm

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- At Philadelphia International Airport, some airlines have begun to cancel flights for Tuesday.

Southwest has decided to not operate at all on Tuesday, and American Airlines says it won't start operation until sometime after 5 p.m.

American Airlines released a statement on Monday, which reads in part:

"American Airlines, along with our regional partners, canceled more than 450 flights Monday, March 13 and 1,450 flights Tuesday, March 14, due to the storm. Our travel alert covers 40 airports - including our Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. hubs - and allows customers whose travel plans are impacted by this inclement weather to rebook without change fees.

Customers can reschedule their travel on aa.com by retrieving their reservation, or by contacting American reservations at +1-800-433-7300 in the U.S. or Canada. Customers calling from outside the U.S. or Canada should check aa.com for our worldwide reservation phone numbers. Customers are also encouraged to check the status of their flight on aa.com."

On a normal Monday Philadelphia International Airport is busy. But the impending storm had more fliers coming through.

As early as Friday many major airlines began reaching out to customers.

"Basically, it said due to the inclement weather we might want to consider making whatever necessary changes for our travel plans," said Takeela Watts of North Carolina.

Most airlines are waiving change fees to rebook flyers scheduled for Monday night and Tuesday, ahead of the storm. They are hoping to prevent stranded fliers and rebooking nightmares later in the week.

"And so, we're able now to all be on the same flight, but now we're on standby when we get to our next location. But better that than what could've been," said Watts.

"I didn't get advice to do it, but I knew if I wanted to get there I should just take matters into my own hands," said Erin Miller of Haddon Heights.

Airport officials are urging travelers to be proactive.

"If you have any kind of flexibility in your schedule, take advantage of these travel waivers because air travel is going to be very challenging on Tuesday," said airport spokesperson Diane Gerace.

Besides travelers, airport staff have to begin to think about how operations will be effected - preparations like pretreating runways for ice will begin Monday.

"We have more than 200 pieces of equipment that we deploy and we have about 475 both airport employees and contractors that are involved in snow removal," said Gerace.

We're expecting to hear more from airlines on their decisions about what they're going to do on Tuesday, including more cancellations.

If you are going to change your flight, that is something you have to do through the airline - not through the airport.

Here are the travel alert links for some of the airlines who schedule flights in and out of PHL:

American Airlines

Southwest Airlines

United Airlines

Delta Airlines

Frontier Airlines

Spirit Airlines