Traveling home for the holidays is hectic enough. But good ol' Mother Nature may be throwing a wrench into several people's holiday travel plans. Heavy winter winds are causing flight cancellations in at least one part of the world, just days before Christmas.
If you were planning on flying to London, then you may have to make other arrangements. London's Heathrow Airport announced that it canceled more than 100 flights over the weekend due to heavy winter winds. Additionally, it also delayed hundreds of flights as well. That's certainly disheartening to the many fliers trying to get to London and get to other parts of the world before Christmas.
But Mother Nature rarely ever takes our plans into account. According to the London airport, Heathrow had to cancel 44 flights on Saturday. It also ended up canceling a further 69 flights on Sunday as well, according to The London Evening Standard. Weather forecasts paint a bleak scene for travelers.
Heavy Winds Cancel Flights
Forecasters expect heavy winter winds to reach up to 85 mph in the country. Meanwhile, they could reach up to 50 mph in London itself. As such, the airport delayed more than 200 flights. However, a a Heathrow spokesperson insisted that it was only "a small number of flights" that got canceled. The spokesperson blamed "strong winds and airspace restrictions" as the reasoning behind the change.
"This will ensure the vast majority of passengers can still safely travel as planned," the spokesperson said. "We know how important travel at this time of year is and have extra colleagues on hand in our terminals to support people on their journeys. We encourage passengers to check in with their airlines for the latest information about their flights."
It comes at an inopportune time for the airport. According to officials, there's an uptick in 21% of travelers, flying on Christmas Day. It's estimated that the airport will break a record this year in travelers. Heavy winter winds look to jeopardize those travel plans. If you are affected, then contact your airline to see if you can make other arrangements. Safe travels for everyone flying home for Christmas.
