Overview
- FlightAware data show Friday brought 43 cancellations and 312 delays for departures at MCO, with 26 cancellations and 346 delays for arrivals.
- Disruptions continued into Saturday morning, with 9 cancellations and 142 delays for departures and 25 cancellations and 149 delays for arrivals by 9:30 a.m., and average departure delays rising to 18 minutes.
- Airport and airline representatives have not identified a single cause, citing a confluence of heavy holiday demand, winter weather in other regions, and aircraft repositioning and operational issues.
- TSA projects December 28 as the busiest day of the period, followed by December 27 and December 29, while United expects December 27 to be its most crowded day and American planned roughly four departures per minute over its holiday schedule.
- Airlines have offered limited change‑fee waivers on affected routes, and travelers are being urged to monitor airline apps, arrive early, and expect sustained congestion through the weekend.