PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — As thousands of flights across the U.S. continue to be canceled this week, travelers in Peoria are getting to where they need to go.
Wednesday afternoon, crowds of travelers flew in and out of Peoria International Airport. Many of those that landed at or departed from the airport reported no significant issues.
“I went to Florida to visit my daughter, she invited me down for Christmas,” said Janet George, a local traveler.
“We’re from St. Petersburg, Florida, and we’re just here to visit family,” said Annie Wilson, a traveler.
Southwest Airlines, which accounts for the vast majority of U.S. flight cancellations, doesn’t have service in Peoria but local travelers said seeing others have challenges made them pay more attention to their flight updates.
“I checked to make sure everything was still on time and okay,” George said.
To avoid the hassle of holiday flight issues, some also rearranged their travel plans.
“Last year we were trying to come prior to Christmas and we missed our flight. So this year we decided to come for New Year and go after the holiday,” Wilson said.
Others preparing to board flights on Wednesday said they didn’t have major concerns due to their travel plans normally going without a hitch.
“I definitely didn’t want to check any bags, I knew that, but you know I’ve always been lucky going back and forth from Austin to Peoria,” said Noah Foster-Frau, a traveler.
Flyers at PIA said they were feeling grateful considering the experience others around the country have faced.
“I’m just glad that we’ve been spared the worst of it,” Foster-Frau said.
According to the flight data website FlightAware, there were only 2 delays coming in or out of Peoria as of Wednesday afternoon.
