Surviving Winter Storm Travel with AAA

PITTSBURGH (NewsRadio1020 KDKA) - Storms blowing across the country are leaving travelers and commuters alike stranded across the Mid-Atlantic region.

The storm forced thousands of flights to be cancelled, accidents and slowed traffic along the roads. Some of those cancelled flights left KDKA talent stranded like Robert Mangino, and it got the Afternoon News thinking, are you prepared if you would get stuck.

Ruth Nagy from AAA joined Bill Rehkopf and the Afternoon News and explained to us the "snowball", pun intended, effect of flying through storms,

"In today's airline environment there not really an extra air crafts out there so that plane that was supposed to come to San Fransisco to Dallas to Cleveland to Pittsburgh that plane got stuck because it couldn't leave San Fransisco to get to Dallas so there isn't a plane to replace that plane to pick up people and get them to where they need to go".

She tells us that if there is a delay especially at a hub airport that's when you get that trickle down effect on delays which can lead to cancellations. Airlines normally will try to be accommodating to travelers because they do not want to be inconveniencing people any more than they already are.

Nagy gave us pointed on how to be prepared for the winter weather and delays it brings to your travel plans.

"Usually a flight will keep the same flight number as it transitions its way through those airports so in checking your flight check just the flight number not necessarily where that flights departing from or going to".

She also says that staying abreast of local forecasts, looking at the arrival times not just the departures and, trying to avoid checking luggage if possible because it is easier to switch planes and plans with just a carry on bag.

You can hear the whole interview here now!

You can also listen to the Afternoon News with Bill Rehkopf weekdays 3-7pm.