HOUSTON – More than 350 flights were cancelled at Bush Intercontinental Airport and Hobby Airport Tuesday morning due to the winter weather.
Houston Airport System employees are asking fliers to check the status of their flights before they head to the airport.
Craig Smith didn't have the luxury of checking his flight before arriving at IAH. He flew from Casper, Wyo., into IAH Monday and was scheduled to take a flight to Atlanta Tuesday. As soon as he landed in Houston, he learned his flight to Atlanta was cancelled.
"Well, they told me they could get me out Wednesday morning at 6 was the earliest they could do it," said Smith. "So I need another hotel room tomorrow."
"Hopefully people will be able to get the message early and not go to the airport," said Houston Airport System spokesperson Darian Ward. "We'd hate to have them here at the airport sitting and waiting."
Some airlines are waiving change fees to make it easier for fliers to get on alternate flights ahead of the icy weather.
If your flight is still leaving as scheduled, you'll need to give yourself some extra time to account for other closures on the way to and at the airport.
"When people are coming through the Beltway 8 to I-45 and Beltway 8 to Highway 59, that was closed because that ramp goes up, so people need to be aware of that as another possibility," explained Ward. "So they may have to use Greens Road or 1960 as another way to get into Bush IAH."
On Friday, the airport system also had to stop the above-ground train that transfers passengers between terminals because of ice and they closed the top parking garage deck. They will likely do the same Tuesday.
Calling the airline directly is the best way to check your flight's status. You can also check Flightaware.com, Flightstats.com and follow Houston airports on Twitter at @iah and @HobbyAirport. The Houston Airport System is retweeting all updates from the airlines.