DeterminedToUpgrade

Forgive me for asking a novice question (did not see an answer after a quick search) and missing a "simple questions" thread if there is one in this forum. I'm on hold with US now trying to help a friend get from PVD to Washington ASAP. Several flights have canceled on him tonight due to the weather and he's interested in taking the Northeast Regional Amtrak service overnight, because he needs to be in Washington first thing tomorrow if at all possible. I have never experienced this kind of situation, so I'm not sure how to advise him or what to ask for.

Will US consider refunding the cost of his flight, since it was canceled albeit beyond US' control, so he can pay for the Amtrak ticket? Thanks much for advice/information.

aztimm

I don't have an answer to your particular question (well I'd say it depends who you talk to), but yes we do have a sticky at the top of the US forum with commonly referenced threads:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/us-ai...w-threads.html

(if you look at the thread list, it shows just above the thread you posted)

Thanks.


aztimm

DeterminedToUpgrade

Thanks. I didn't see anything relevant to this question, but apologies if it was there. Maybe I shouldn't've been in such a rush to try to figure this out anyway, since it seems I'll be holding for a while with all the weather in the system tonight!

3Cforme

DOT rules allow the ticketed passenger to get a refund for any cancelled flight, irrespective of reason, back to the original form of payment, for all flights subject to U.S. DOT regulation. So, yes - he can get a refund. It may not be instant.

DeterminedToUpgrade

Cheers, thank you. Good lesson for me. I prefer to stick it out and keep my rebooked flights, so I've never had this experience.

jchan2

I was allowed to take a refund for US 3947 GSP-DCA which went WX today, but I chose to rebook on the morning flight.

The (very nice) phone agent tried looking at ATL and CLT (I was in my car on the way to GSP when the cancellation came in, and I could have easily driven to either airport) as well as all DC airports, but nothing. Seems like tonight is just not a good night to go to DC.

Doc Savage

You'd think there was a hurricane going on or something!

ellinj

I am pretty sure today's fiasco had nothing to do with the hurricane. Extended ground stop made a mess, when my flight finally cancelled and I left the airport there was not a plane in site. Kinda weird.

Adam1222

I'm not sure if you know how weather works. But the ground stop was due to a storm that is attached to the hurricane.

ellinj

Most of the ground stops at DCA and north were due to typical summer evening thunderstorm cells, The hurricane was 500-1000 miles south of where most of the trouble was yesterday. Looking at the FAA site yesterday afternoon everything was open to the south and west.

Adam1222

First, the ground stops weren't til the evening, so that would explain why you saw nothing yesterday afternoon.

I guess we have different definitions of the "Hurricane". Storms aren't neatly defined into boxes, and we can differ weather the same fronts that caused the hurricane caused the storms 500 miles away. Last night at DCA was not a typical summer evening by any means. Moreover, the hurricane itself made landfall last night in North Carolina, rain related to the storm started earlier in the evening. North Carolina is south of DC.

Things weren't clear south of DC. Check out what happened at CHS last night. Note that flights from ATL and CLT were heavily delayed.

Often1

Anytime a carrier can't operate your flight, you are entitled to a full refund. Period. Has nothing to do with fault.

On the NE corridor, it's rarely worth waiting through regional WX delays as the Amtrak option is likely to kick in as better.

The sole downside depending on your circumstances is that your air ticket refund won't process for a bit while your Amtrak ticket will cause a hold instantly.

IADCAflyer

We had a real doozy of a system roll through DC yesterday. 65 mph wind gusts in Fairfax County, heavy lightning, and quarter sized hail out in Maryland.

One of the more intense storms I've seen in a couple of years.

Time frame was 4:00 to about 5:30 pm and things didn't recover from that.

scottsam66

+1

phlwookie

Everyone's sort of right on this. While the hurricane did not directly affect the major cities, it did provide enhanced moisture for an approaching cold front from the west which would have triggered storms on its own anyway, but likely triggered far more substantial storm outbreaks because of the additional moisture in the air. The combination of the front passage and the exit of the hurricane then pulled down some dry, very pleasant air that made for some very nice weather for the July 4th holiday.