Record snowfalls could impact…cruise lines?

As many as 8200 flights were cancelled along the US’s East Coast, which could cost the airlines US$150 million and even lead to an industry shakeup, but the impact of the bitter Christmas weather and record snowfall may have implications for other forms of travel both in the US and Europe.
 

Cruise lines, for one.
 

The weather’s the reason.
 

The “wave season” starts in mid-January and that usually means winter-weary cruisers are looking at sunnier skies.
 

Could this year’s unseasonably cold weather and record snowfall in both the US and Europe lead to more demand that could prompt higher cruise fares?
 

Carnival Cruise’s marketing officer Jim Berra tells USA Today that the snow windfalls may have more would-be cruisers looking to book.
 

"The colder it is the quicker people’s thoughts turn to sunny vacations," Berra said.
 

His boss, Carnival Corp. chief Micky Arison, also noted during the line’s recent earnings calls that he expected this winter’s bad weather to have a positive impact on cruise sales.
 

Norwegian Cruise Line said that already this week the line has seen an uptick in phone calls and a slight increase in web traffic.
 

That could help raise fares, obviously a positive move for the cruise industry. But the airlines will see little positive about the storms.
 

The blizzard in the Northeast US that left thousands of passengers stranded and temporarily shut down the busiest air market in the country last week could cost the airline industry up to $150 million, some analysts predict.
 

Airports were still recovering Thursday as travelers remained stranded by the storm.
 

The estimates came as airlines struggled to find space for passengers whose original flights were grounded by the storm that struck Sunday, and whose rippling effect continued to cause cancellations and delays.
 

“They’re still cleaning up. They’re trying to rebook people. They’ve got to get their pilots back in position," said consultant Bob Harrell.
 

Many holiday travelers are flying on cheaper, non-refundable tickets. So it’s passengers — not the airlines — who lose money if they decide not to fly.
 

The Wall Street Journal said "the storm showed how little margin for error exists in the US air-transport system, with airlines trying to keep flights as full as possible. In many cases, carriers try to pre-cancel flights before a storm so their customers don’t come to the airport and end up camping there."
 

Others have called for a new look at airline policies during weather cancellations.
 

As many as 1.2 million airline customers may have been affected by almost 8,200 flight cancellations as the US storm led to closed major airports. Passengers were forced to try to make new plans, sometimes without being able to reach airlines by phone or online for help.
 

“Anger mounted among passengers stranded on airport tarmacs and in terminals as flight delays threatened to stretch into the weekend following the worst December snowstorm to hit New York City in six decades,” said Bloomberg News.
 

“There’s a haphazard strategy to how airlines address these issues,” said Brandon Macsata, executive director of the Association for Airline Passenger Rights. “That’s why passengers get so angry. It’s not about the weather. It’s about how airlines communicate after weather occurs.”
 

Europe had its storm problems and in recent days, bitter weather has delayed air travelers in Russia. The Telegraph reported that a large group of Russian passengers, many of them stranded for more than 24 hours, were “rioting.”
 

Hundreds of flights were cancelled after freezing rain snapped power lines and cut electricity to Domodedovo, while a lack of de-icing fluid kept planes from taking off at Sheremetyevo, another big Moscow airport.
 

Sub-zero temperatures and snow are typical for Moscow’s winter months, but the weekend saw an unusually heavy downpour of rare freezing rain that can form a thick layer of ice on power cables, eventually breaking them under its weight.
 

By David Wilkening