Airlines waive change fees for travel in Northeast, Midwest

In advance of the snow storm predicted to hit to the Northeast Thursday afternoon, some airlines have announced temporary change-fee waivers for passengers who wish to alter their travel plans. Similar policies were implemented earlier in the week for travel in the Midwest. Normally travelers generally have to pay a fee of up to $100 to change flight departure dates or routing unless a high priced “unrestricted” ticket was purchased.

American, AirTran, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, United, and US Airways have all posted notice of storm-related change-fee waivers on their websites. Most are allowing changes for travel in the Northeast scheduled through Friday and in Midwest scheduled through today. To qualify for the waiver, you must be traveling to, from, or through specific airports designated by the airline and reschedule your departure within a certain number of days from your original travel date, generally five to seven. Full details are listed on the airlines’ websites. If you are flying and your airline has not posted a storm policy on its website yet, check back later or call to see if one will be instituted.