While much of the country battled the elements Thursday — the first day of winter — it was business as usual for thousands of fliers leaving the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.

        On one of the busiest travel days of the holiday season, delays were kept to a minimum and few flights were canceled — 10 of 1,200 through Thursday evening — said Ted Bushelman, the airport's director of communications.

        The lack of problems “didn't really surprise me,” Mr. Bushelman said. “What gives you a big fit is that icy rain.”

A Delta Air Lines passenger jet is de-iced Thursday at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. (Tony Jones photo) | ZOOM |

        Freezing rain coated roads and bridges across much of the South, while the upper Plains and upper Midwest were belted with subzero temperatures and up to 6 inches of snow.

        While parts of Minnesota were hit with wind chills of 60 below zero, in Minneapolis it was a computer outage that forced cancellation of 150 Northwest Airlink flights operated by Mesaba Airlines.

        The outage prevented flights from departing for about three hours Thursday afternoon, Mesaba spokeswoman Ann Barkelew said.

        In Cincinnati, Mr. Bushelman said, “With this kind of weather, you don't know what's going to happen. Of course, our snow crew will be standing by in case they're needed.”

        Mr. Bushelman said the airport will increase its staff by as much as 30 percent over the weekend.

        As of Thursday evening, no Delta or Comair flights in Cincinnati scheduled for today or Saturday had been canceled.

        “If we know a weather front is coming in, we'll assess the situation and make cancellations in a timely fashion so that we can alert people before they even leave their homes,” said Meghan Glynn, spokeswoman for Hebron-based Comair.

AIR TRAVEL TIPS

• Arrive at the airport at least one hour before your scheduled departure.    • Adults should bring picture IDs.    • Don't carry on wrapped presents; chances are you'll have to unwrap them at security check-points.    • Do carry on medicine, cash and jewelry (in case bags are lost).    • Include a sheet of paper inside bags you check with your name, address, phone and where you are staying. (It will come in handy if a bag is lost and outside labels falls off.)    • If going on a long flight, get a good night's sleep, eat a light meal and drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration.    • Leave a guaranteed contact number with the airline, in case of an early cancellation. Airline officials say many passengers leave the number of their travel agency, which can be closed on weekends.    • If your flight has been canceled, stay on the line with the representative and get alternates as soon as possible before they fill up.    • Leave early. With 400 short-term parking spaces out of commission at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport because of construction, there will be a crush next to the terminal that will overflow to long-term parking.    • Check the weather at the destination city before leaving. Call the airline if there are questions about a flight. (Delta's number is 800-325-1999; Comair's 800-221-1212.)    • If a flight is canceled while you're at the airport, try to avoid the customer service line by calling the airline or travel agent directly.

        Nikki Hildebrandt of Cincinnati was headed for Rapid City, S.D., Thursday morning to spend the holidays with family.

        “So far, so good,” Ms. Hildebrandt said. “We'll see what time I actually arrive at my final destination.” Her trip's first leg was to Minneapolis.

        Teresa and Kelly Robinson of Anderson Township, who flew from Cincinnati to Portland, Maine, on Thursday with two babies, said their flight took an extra hour to take off because the plane had to be de-iced.

        But the flight itself went well, they said. They landed without incident in Portland.

        Both Comair and Delta officials expect heavy passenger loads this weekend but declined to say how full their planes are.

        Bad weather could hamper Delta, especially because some of the airline's pilots have been declining overtime as contract negotiations continue. The airline on Thursday, for example, canceled 20 percent of Atlanta flights because of weather and action by the pilots, officials said.

        “The weather is compounding the delays and cancellations we're experiencing due to pilot unavailability in association with their ongong job actions,” Delta spokesperson Peggy Estes said. The pilots' union said there is no way to confirm such statements.

        “There is no illegal action going on by the Delta pilots,” said Karen Miller, spokeswoman for the Air Line Pilots Association. “There are some people who have declined to fly overtime on their days off. We are absolutely opposed to any type of concerted job action by our pilots. But a pilot does have a right to choose to fly on his day off or not.”

        Travelers preparing to head out today can expect cold or wet weather to continue through much of the country.

        Forecasters call for bitter cold conditions in Greater Cincinnati through at least Monday. Today's forecast calls for a high of 12 with a chance of flurries. Saturday's high will be 22 with some light snow. Sunday and Christmas Day temperatures will top out in the high teens or low 20s.

       Kristina Goetz of the Enquirer and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
       

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