ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando International Airport made national headlines this weekend over concerns that its fuel supply issues could mean trouble for travelers ahead of the holidays.
The airport, however, says it already has a plan in place for any potential flight disruptions.
The Federal Aviation Administration warned pilots that the airport was running low on fuel, with issues expected to continue through Tuesday evening, USA Today reported.
Airplanes flying into Orlando International Airport on Monday were encouraged to top off at airports they were coming from after recent bad weather prevented the delivery of reserve jet fuel, prompting fears that visitors could face delays.
Airport spokesperson Carolyn Fennell said there have not been any major interruptions and that reserve fuel was being trucked into Orlando International Airport, the nation's seventh-busiest airport.
“Today is expected to be a busy day," Fennell said Monday. “With the fuel moving in, it will be certified and then we will be able to go back to our normal way of fueling."
That could come sometime early this week, she said.
As of Monday afternoon, there were 103 delays and three cancellations at Orlando International Airport, according to the flight-tracking site FlightAware.
Storms along the Gulf Coast had prevented the reserve fuel delivery over the weekend. The inclement weather has since lifted, allowing the ships to depart, airport officials said in a tweet.
“If flight disruptions occur, airline contingency plans are currently in place," the airport officials said on Sunday. “Thank you for your patience."
After learning of the fuel supply issues, some airlines began taking proactive steps to prevent issues for travelers.
United Airlines added extra stops for refueling for flights from Orlando, a spokesperson for the airline told USA Today. Delta offered travelers a waiver to reschedule their flights to and from Orlando for later in the week at no charge.
With 40.3 million passengers last year, Orlando International Airport was the busiest airport in Florida and the seventh-busiest in the U.S. In 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic, the airport had 50.6 million passengers. The Christmas holiday season is one of the busiest times of the year for central Florida's theme parks, and the airport had its fifth busiest day ever on Saturday, Fennell said.
10 Tampa Bay's Andrea Chu contributed to this report.