The clocks moved forward, the snow is gradually disappearing and warmer days in the Northeast are coming. But what a winter this has been – and what havoc it has wreaked on the airline industry and the poor passengers who fly on their planes. Flights have been cancelled for mechanical and weather-related issues, you name it and it’s happened. It all added up to a very un-pretty scene of disgruntled passengers and airline employees desperately trying to be nice. There are always those un-nice ones that secretly do this for a living, because they hate you so much. But during the dreaded storms of February, they were often left without options to be nice with. It’s helpful to know why the flight got cancelled: a mechanical problem means that the airline will cover your accommodations. A snowstorm?….hope you brought your sleeping bag because that means you’re sleeping at the airport. Bottom line is to stay calm and try to figure out what’s going on as fast as possible.

So what is the real cost factor for the airlines on a cancelled flight, and what are the driving forces that cause one flight to cancel and another to fly? There was a great article in the Wall Street Journal by Scott McCartney. Here’s the lowdown: To cancel a 50-passenger regional jet can cost as little as $1,000. But cancelling a journey over the Atlantic can cost as much as $43,000. And a typical domestic narrow-bodied jet costs around $15,000 to cancel. If cancellations are caused by uncontrollable events like weather disruptions, the costs go down – it’s an act of God and you have to sleep at the airport.  No hotel vouchers for you!

And the food can cost as much as $13,000 for a wide-bodied international trip. That’s $40 on average, per meal. Are you kidding me?! Despite the high average I can tell you – what they serve in business and first class sure doesn’t balance out the cost of the lousy meals served in economy. To be sure, business class passengers get all the perks – they might even get your plane if there is something wrong with yours. They’ll take an airplane that you might be on, with a whole bunch of “less important people” and switch out your plane, just so these guys can get to where they’re going!  Airlines don’t like to cancel these business travelers – they’re frequent travelers and they will complain. I know. Hey, that’s life in the fast lane.