Flight Cancellations Dropping at MIA and FLL As Milton Departs

Miami and Fort Lauderdale saw extensive flight delays and cancellations brought on by Hurricane Milton.

October 10, 2024

Image: close-up photo of a board showing delays and cancellations at an airport

Misery, thy name is Milton. Hurricane Milton is wreaking all manner of havoc on air travel, and it hasn't made landfall yet. Photo by Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images

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As forecast, Hurricane Milton did his thing last night. Today, even as we're tracking Central Florida's recovery via measurements like the Waffle House Index and introducing readers to our new favorite Florida Men, we've had our eyes on Miami-area airports, which are still dealing with disruptions from the storm.

The weather is back to plain old hot and humid in South Florida, and at 4:40 p.m. Thursday, Miami International Airport (MIA) appeared to have settled down in the competition for the dubious distinction of America's Most Miserable Airport; ditto Fort Lauderdale International Airport (FLL).

Those two hubs led the nation this morning, and when it comes to flights in and out between 2 and 6 p.m. today, MIA has seen only 17 delays and six cancellations, while FLL checks in with 15 delays and two cancellations, which places them at spots 5 and 8 on the MiseryMap Top 10. (The top four in terms of misery right now are Chicago, Seattle, Denver, and Dallas.)

click to enlarge

Screenshot of FlightAware's MiseryMap, showing flight delays and cancellations nationwide

A late afternoon screenshot shows fewer delays delays and cancellations at MIA. We're down to number 5! 😃

FlightAware screenshot

Digging deeper, it's clear the brunt of today's delays and cancellations occurred closer to Milton's swath of destruction.

Overall, since midnight, Orlando International Airport (MCO) has seen 493 cancellations and eight delays, Tampa International (TPA) 234 cancellations and eight delays, and Southwest Florida International (RSW) in Fort Myers 97 cancellations and no delays.

South Florida dodged the brunt of Milton last night — though the winds certainly howled outside our doors. That paled, though, next to the armada of tornadoes ahead of the storm Wednesday, a barrage heralded not long after daybreak by a twister on Alligator Alley in Broward County along I-75.

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