{"id":129686,"date":"2026-01-23T22:08:20","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T22:08:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/129686\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T22:08:20","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T22:08:20","slug":"winter-storm-sparks-travel-concerns-delays-at-tampa-international-airport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/129686\/","title":{"rendered":"Winter storm sparks travel concerns, delays at Tampa International Airport"},"content":{"rendered":"

While skies over Tampa remain clear, a powerful winter storm sweeping across much of the country is already disrupting air travel.<\/p>\n

TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 While skies over Tampa remain clear, a powerful winter storm sweeping across much of the country<\/a> is already disrupting air travel \u2014 and the ripple effects are being felt at Tampa International Airport (TPA).<\/p>\n

As of Friday afternoon,\u00a0dozens of flight delays had already been reported at TPA,<\/a> with more expected as winter weather impacts major hubs in the Midwest, Northeast and along the East Coast.<\/p>\n

Passengers traveling out of Tampa said they\u2019re closely watching conditions in their destination cities.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going back to Atlanta, Georgia,\u201d said Judy Whaley, who said freezing rain and snow are expected where she\u2019s headed. \u201cWe don\u2019t get that very often, so everybody\u2019s panicking. I\u2019m glad I\u2019m getting out today before it hits.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others said uncertainty about return travel is adding stress.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know, looking forward to being here, but also a little nervous about getting home on Sunday,\u201d said Elizabeth Joyce, adding that conditions remain unpredictable. \u201cNobody knows when anything is going to hit, how hard it\u2019s going to hit. Everything keeps changing.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to AAA, even airports not directly impacted by winter weather can see delays as aircraft and crews get stuck elsewhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe weather here in Tampa is pretty calm, but nationwide there\u2019s congestion,\u201d said Mark Jenkins, a spokesman for AAA. \u201cExpect schedule changes, gate shifts and slower operations as airlines deal with deicing and ground stops in affected cities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jenkins said airlines are often proactive, offering travel waivers that allow passengers to change flights without paying extra fees.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat can be a huge help if you want to avoid the worst of the storm,\u201d Jenkins said, noting that airlines may also cancel some flights ahead of time. \u201cIt\u2019s frustrating, but ultimately it\u2019s meant to keep travelers safe and give airlines more control over scheduling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Several travelers at TPA said they opted to fly earlier than planned to stay ahead of the weather.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t hear about the bad weather until a couple of days ago,\u201d Manny Morales said. \u201cBut I\u2019m definitely glad to be flying out today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others said they\u2019re relying heavily on technology to stay informed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m keeping an eye on the incoming flights and the app \u2014 just watching how delayed things are,\u201d said Matt Wilkinson, who said he\u2019s also prepared to rebook if needed. \u201cSometimes Mother Nature has other ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

AAA recommends travelers download their airline\u2019s app and enable alerts, as updates and rebooking options often appear there before airport announcements.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost updates will hit airline apps first,\u201d Jenkins said. \u201cThat\u2019s where travelers will see real-time alerts and options long before they\u2019re announced at the airport.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some travelers are also turning to third-party flight-tracking tools.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Paul Bernardini of\u00a0Flighty.com<\/a> said his app pulls directly from aircraft data.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re tapped directly into the flight information that your pilot gets,\u201d Bernardini said. \u201cWe want you to know as soon as possible \u2014 not when the airline tells you.\u201d<\/p>\n

AAA says flexibility is key, especially for travelers without travel insurance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Situations like this is why we always stress travel insurance,” Jenkins said. “But for those who don’t have it, if your flight gets canceled, skip the counter. Go straight to the app or the website. Because digital rebooking is always faster than waiting in line.”<\/p>\n

Jenkins also suggested considering alternatives such as trains or buses, which are often less affected by winter weather, while warning rental cars can sell out quickly in storm-hit cities and pose risks for drivers unfamiliar with icy conditions.<\/p>\n

Despite the delays, some travelers remain cautiously optimistic.<\/p>\n

\u201cTampa airport is a great airport \u2014 one of the ones I\u2019ve had the least issues at,\u201d Wilkinson said. \u201cI still have faith that I\u2019ll be making it out.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"While skies over Tampa remain clear, a powerful winter storm sweeping across much of the country is already…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":129687,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-129686","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129686"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129686\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129687"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}