American Airlines has cancelled thousands of flights as Hurricane Irma bears down on the Caribbean en route to Florida, the company said Wednesday.
In an email to Global News, the airline said it has cancelled a total of 2,185 flights between Sept. 7 and Sept. 11 as it prepares to wind down operations in some areas threatened by the storm.
Coverage of Hurricane Irma on Globalnews.ca:
American Airlines plans to shut operations at its Miami hub, as well as in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers and West Palm Beach on Friday afternoon, it said in an email to Global News.
Operations are expected to be cancelled throughout the weekend, the airline said.
Trips that were scheduled to arrive in Miami from South America and Europe on Friday have been cancelled as well.
The final flight out of Miami that day will leave at 3:49 p.m. ET, en route to Dallas/Fort Worth.
READ MORE: PHOTOS: Hurricane Irma cuts a path of destruction through the Caribbean
Meanwhile, American Airlines also plans to wind down operations in Orlando on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. ET; all flights are expected to be cancelled the following day.
The airline continues to “evaluate operations at other Florida airports, including Sarasota and Tampa, and will make adjustments as necessary.”
But these plans could change as the hurricane blows closer to the continental U.S., it added.
American Airlines expects to update its plans on Thursday morning.
The airline has capped pre-tax fares at $99 for main cabin seats on single-leg flights out of Florida, for trips that were sold through Sept. 10, for travel up to Sept. 13, it added.
Under certain conditions, American Airlines passengers might also be able to change their trips without any change fees.
READ MORE: How did Hurricane Irma get to be a ‘monster’ storm and will it happen again?
But it’s not the only airline offering a deal like this.
JetBlue is also offering $99 direct flights out of every city in Florida in which it has operations.
JetBlue will also have a maximum fare of $159 up to the last available seat on its flights that connect through Florida.
Delta Airlines has also offered a price cap of $399 on flights out of Florida.
- With files from Reuters