- Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm near Fort Myers, Florida, on Wednesday.
- Airports across the state have been preparing for the storm, with airlines canceling hundreds of flights.
Airports and airlines are bracing for impact as Hurricane Ian makes landfall in Florida — and airlines already are canceling flights.
If your flight is canceled, then the airline must provide a full refund. According to FlightAware data, nearly 1,850 flights originating from or flying to Orlando, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, or Fort Myers have been canceled as of 5:30 pm on Wednesday.
And it's not just Florida and the East Coast that are likely to be affected, experts are warning.
Kathleen Bangs, an aviation analyst at FlightAware, told Insider she expects Hurricane Ian to create a snowball effect across the nation: "There's going to be impacts to a lot of people, even if you're in Seattle and Denver and have Florida or East Coast travel."
Bangs also warned that passengers rebooking flights may find there are not many seats available because of the already high demand for the fall season.
"Everybody thought demand would drop after the back-to-school period, but airlines have said the demand hasn't fallen off," she explained. "Right now, we've seen carriers say rebooked travel needs to occur by October 3; others have said October 8, so it's possible they'll stretch it further. But, a lot of those flights are already booked, so airlines may add extra flights."
It may take a while for airports in Florida, especially in Tampa, Sarasota, and Fort Myers, to get back on track because it is uncertain the condition the airports will be in, or if employees will be able to work, Bangs told Insider.
"We're waiting to see how they'll be impacted: Will they lose power? Will they have water, and will there be roof damage, which would prohibit from having passengers inside" she said. "Let's say they can get the airports open, but the question is will they get employees back in because many have evacuated."
The National Hurricane Center is warning the Category 4 storm is carrying "catastrophic winds." If your flight has yet to be canceled, but you no longer want to travel to Florida, Georgia, or the Carolinas because of Hurricane Ian, here's what you need to know:
Alaska Airlines: Customers traveling to, from, or through Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Orlando, or Fort Myers from September 25-30 can change their flight for free. The ticket must have been booked by September 25, the city pair must be the same, and the new trip must be completed by October 8.
- Customer service: (800) 252-7522
Allegiant Air: Customers traveling to, from, or through the Florida cities of St. Petersburg, Sarasota, Punta Gorda, Fort Lauderdale, Sanford, Destin-Fort Walton, Key West, or Jacksonville from September 26-30 can change their flight to a later date. The airline did not specify a "travel by" date. Travelers must call the customer service line to make changes.
- Customer service: (702) 505-8888
American Airlines: Customers traveling to, from, or through 31 airports in Florida, the Western Caribbean, Georgia, and the Carolinas can change their flights for free, including flights booked in basic economy, though the city pair must be the same.
Travelers must have been scheduled to travel by October 1 and booked by September 23 for the Western Caribbean and Florida, or scheduled to travel by October 3 and booked by September 28 for Georgia and the Carolinas. Changes must be made by October 1 for the Western Caribbean and Florida, and October 3 for Georgia and the Carolinas. Travel must occur by October 8 and October 10, respectively.
- Customer service: (800) 433-7300
Delta Air Lines: Customers traveling to, from, or through the Florida cities of Daytona, Panama City, Key West, Fort Lauderdale, Gainesville, Jacksonville, Orlando, Miami, Melbourne, West Palm Beach, Pensacola, Fort Myers, Tallahassee, Tampa, and Fort Walton from September 25-30 can change their flight for free as long as rebooked travel occurs by October 3. Changing the city pair may increase the fare.
- Customer service: (800) 221-1212
Frontier Airlines: Customers who booked a ticket before September 26 and are traveling to, from, or through Orlando, Tampa, Fort Myers, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Pensacola, or Jacksonville can change their flight for free. The fare difference is waived and travel must be complete no later than October 10.
- Customer service: (602) 333-5925
JetBlue Airways: Customers traveling to, from, or through the Florida cities of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Sarasota, Tampa, or West Palm Beach from September 26-30 can waive the usual change fee and fare difference. Rebooked travel must occur by October 6 and the original booking must have been made before September 25.
For Charleston and Savannah, the same rules apply for bookings from September 30 to October 1, and tickets must have been purchased before September 28.
- Customer service: (800) 538-2583
Spirit Airlines: Flight to from, or through the Florida cities of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa from September 27-30 can be changed, though travel must be complete by October 3. The change fee and fare difference will be waived.
- Customer service: (855) 728-3555
Southwest Airlines: Customers flying to, from, or through the Florida cities of Destin, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Panama City, Pensacola, Sarasota, Tampa, and West Palm Beach, or to Cuba, from September 25 to October 2 can rebook for free and travel within 14 days of their original date.
Those traveling through Charleston or Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; or Savannah, Georgia, from September 27 to October 2 can do the same.
- Customer service: (800) 435-9792
Sun Country Airlines: Customers traveling to, from, or through the Florida cities of Fort Myers, Orlando, or Tampa from September 25-30 can rebook their flight once for free. Tickets must have been purchased prior to September 24 and the new trip must start by October 6. Travel to, from, or through Jacksonville, Florida, on September 30 can change their ticket for free if the new trip starts by October 7.
- Customer service: (651) 905-2737
United Airlines: Customers flying to, from, or through the Florida cities of Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Key West, Miami, Orlando, Panama City, Pensacola, Sarasota, Tampa, and West Palm Beach from September 23-30 can waive the change fee and fare difference. Travelers must rebook by October 8 and keep the same city pair.
- Customer service: (800) 864-8331