Airlines are informing shippers not to send cargo to airports in the expected path of Hurricane Milton as the airline industry implements contingency plans to move people and equipment in Florida out of harm’s way.
Tampa International Airport suspended all operations at 9 a.m. Tuesday, and Orlando International Airport said it will halt all activity at 8 a.m. Wednesday. Orlando airport will remain open for emergency aid and relief flights. Neither airport handles significant air cargo volumes. Orlando is the 30th-largest U.S. airport for air cargo by landed weight, according to Federal Aviation Administration data.
Hurricane Milton is expected to make landfall on the west coast of central Florida on Wednesday and be extremely destructive.
Delta Air Lines’ cargo division issued a notice that it will no longer accept shipments or deliver shipments to Orlando airport, effective at noon on Tuesday through Friday. Similar restrictions are in place for Tampa Bay, Sarasota and Fort Myers.
United Cargo closed freight facilities in Tampa and Orlando on Tuesday through Thursday due to expected hurricane conditions. Any cargo currently in transit and destined for either airport during the closure period will be retained at the previous station, unless a reroute has been requested by the customer, it informed customers on its website. The airline anticipates resuming cargo service at both locations on Friday, if it is deemed safe.
American Airlines also implemented an embargo on all shipments moving from, to or through Orlando and Tampa airports that lasts until Friday. Restrictions for Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers and Sarasota are scheduled to last through Thursday.
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