Sometimes in life when fate deals out the cards, you are lucky when many others are not. Last weekend in Dallas was one such occasion for me. Somehow I managed to escape Winter Storm Ferm when many, even most, others did not.
The weekend of Sat-24-Jan-2026 and several days onwards has been problematic for all US airlines. Cold air from the North Pole brought it’s Arctic chill to many of the lower 50 states.
I was in Texas, which declared a state of emergency. So did New Mexico, Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and at least ten other states.
This is the kind of weekend which highlights lessons to be learned. Things that work and things that do not. Airlines that somehow coped and airlines that broke down.
I do not want to comment on what American Airlines and Dallas Fort Worth did well and what they did not do well. That is for other analysts, a later time and more considered thought.
But I do want to report what I saw and how I saw it happen. Looking back it was something of an epic adventure for the ages. Perhaps not quite The Odyssey or The Mahabharata, but I will certainly never forget it.
Frankly, I still cannot believe that I am actually home.
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The weather forecast
I had a great time in Dallas. As well as the Frontiers of Flight Museum I went up the Reunion Tower for great views.
Next I visited the Sixth Floor Museum in the old Texas Book Depository, which covers the assassination of President Kennedy. Seeing the place where such a remarkable incident in history happened puts everything into perspective.
For most of the time I was in Dallas the weather was pleasant. You might have gone to play golf wearing a polo shirt and a short sleeved jumper.
On Tuesday and Wednesday the people I had gone to see started remarking on the weather. They said it was going to get bad. It did.
I was due to fly out of Dallas and back to London on Sat-24-Jan-2026. This flight was cancelled on Thu-22-Jan-2026 and I was auto-rebooked onto AA20 on Sun-25.
Reports on FlyerTalk suggested three-hour plus waits on the phone to rebook. The aa dot com rebooking tool did not appear to be working – alternative flights were available, but changes were charged the commercial fare, not free of charge as they should have been under the airline’s waiver.
I went to stay at the Grand Hyatt for two nights. I had a great room with runway views. I watched flights head off.
Staying at the airport if at all possible during disruption is a good idea. Not only will you not have to worry about public transport or taxis through difficult conditions, the check-in agents can move you to earlier flights easily.
While I was at the Hyatt I even headed downstairs when I saw seats to London pop up on Expert Flyer. With the weather I knew was coming, getting out and wasting my hotel room was better than staying.
Sadly by the time I got to the American Airlines check-in desk they were gone and I hunkered down.
Some statistics from Flight Aware tell the story of what was happening across the United States and just how serious an event Winter Storm Fern has been
Here are cancellations and delays, by airline.
Sunday-25-Jan:
American Airlines: 59% cancelled, 24% delayed
Delta: 45% cancelled, 24% delayed
Southwest: 33% cancelled, 23% delayed
United: 36% cancelled, 26% delayed
Monday-26-Jan:
American Airlines 57% cancelled, 27% delayed
Delta: 14% cancelled, 38% delayed
Southwest: 10% cancelled, 31% delayed
United: 11% cancelled, 32% delayed
Tuesday-27-Jan:
American Airlines 45% cancelled, 34% delayed
Delta: 3% cancelled, 26% delayed
Southwest: 0% cancelled, 21% delayed
United: 1% cancelled, 16% delayed
Dallas Fort Worth suffered more delays and cancellations than any other airport, again according to Flight Aware.
For originating flights:
Sunday: 71% cancelled, 23% delayed
Monday: 58% cancelled, 26% delayed
Tuesday: 31% cancelled, 36% delayed
For terminating flights:
Sunday: 63% cancelled, 28% delayed
Monday: 57% cancelled, 26% delayed
Tuesday: 36% cancelled, 27% delayed
American’s longhaul flights from Dallas out of the Americas operated or were cancelled as follows:
London: Three of four cancelled
Cancelled: Madrid, Auckland, Tokyo Narita, Paris, Santiago, Shanghai
Operated: Barcelona, Tokyo Haneda
25% operated, 75% cancelled.
I collected this data from the airline’s online flight status page.
For other oneworld carriers:
Qantas cancelled the A380 service to Sydney and operated the 787 to Melbourne with an extra stop in Auckland.
Cathay Pacific operated their flight to Hong Kong via Osaka.
Qatar Airways and Japan Air Lines operated. British Airways did not.
Note that Southwest seems to have recovered much more quickly than American Airlines, despite both airlines having near identically placed hubs at Dallas Fort Worth and Love Field respectively. The two airports are only 11 miles apart on a flat plain.
However Southwest and American Airlines may not be directly comparable. Southwest’s aircraft rotation patterns are based on point-to-point movements. AA’s a hub-and-spoke.
Saturday – the ice cometh
When I opened my blind on Saturday morning it was bleak outside. Snow dusted the ground. Ice was falling from the sky.
When it cleared up every now and then a few flights started moving around.
Snow ploughs and what I think are de-icing trucks (happy to be corrected!) shuntered around all day.
On Friday the hotel was not busy. On Saturday it was fully booked. Getting a table for dinner required a 30 minute wait.
This made me worry about where I would stay if I could not get out on Sunday.
Sunday morning
I headed downstairs to check in at about 11.30am. I was tempted to ask to be moved to the earlier flight of the day, AA50 leaving at 3.45pm. It was a good job I did not – this flight was cancelled.
After two minutes to get through security and a short walk I was in the Flagship Lounge. It was working well. There were plenty of seats and good food and drink.
I noted with interest that all flights had a gate assigned, even though departure was still many hours away.
At “my” gate, D23, a 787 was on stand…
Sunday afternoon
The 787 at gate D23 had been scheduled to fly to Hawaii at zero dark hundred that morning. That flight was cancelled. It was then reallocated for a 9am-ish flight, also to Hawaii.
But there was clearly a problem. The engine cowling was up and wrenches were being turned. A Captain was visible on the flight deck.
I watched the aircraft scheduled to operate the 3.45pm flight appear in it’s special “Flagship” livery. This was at about 2.30pm. I thought it would be great to be flying on that specially painted plane. Thankfully I was not.
Near showstopper 1:
Maintenance on the 787 was not complete before the gate was required to accept the plane due to carry me back to London, which as it happened was coming in from London.
Boeing 777-300ER N736AT landed at 1.45pm. It then headed to park at the north end of the airport, where it stayed for nearly three hours.
Near showstopper 2:
At about 3.20pm a tug appeared to push the 787 back and free up the gate. A group of ramp agents worked to shovel snow away. Unfortunately the tug appeared to break down.
