Our stay in Gulf Shores has been longer than expected. The ice storm in Atlanta forced the cancellation of our connecting flight there. They automatically rescheduled us onto a flight to Cincinatti instead, leaving at 645 pm. Well, when I saw that I didn’t notice the date. So we drove an hour to Pensacola only to discover that they had moved us to a flight Monday night at 645. The situation in Atlanta was such a mess that that was the earliest they could get us on our way. 2-3 days of cancelled flights had left quite a backlog. Here’s an excerpt from the Atlanta Jounral-Constitution that makes the point well:
“The remnants of the ice storm won’t slow today’s commute. Schools will open. But if you’re unfortunate enough to be flying out of town . . . well, that’s another story.
Travelers at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport may encounter a repeat of Sunday’s scrum, when lines snaked the length of both terminals.
“Even though all four runways are open, it will take time to clear the backlog of stranded passengers.
The crush began building Saturday. Of 2,500 scheduled flights, only 290 operated.
The airport brought in extra employees, and workers passed out blankets and toiletries kits to about 300 travelers who spent the night curled up on the floor.”
So staying with my uncle and aunt down here is certainly a nice thing – sure beats sleeping on the airport floor somewhere.