Orlando, Tampa airports to close ahead of Hurricane Ian, hundreds of flights canceled

Two major Florida airports will close completely ahead of anticipated carnage from Hurricane Ian.

Tampa International Airport will suspend operations at 5 p.m. Tuesday, while Orlando International Airport will shut down at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Ian is expected to make landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast sometime Wednesday night. But the storm will bring high winds, heavy rainfall and damaging storm surge to the region long before its official arrival. The outer bands reached the Florida Keys by Tuesday afternoon.

Southwest passengers and an employee try to deal with the flood of cancellations on Tuesday at Tampa International Airport. (Chris O'Meara/)

Tampa was supposed to handle nearly 400 combined inbound and outbound flights on Wednesday, according to FlightAware data. Orlando had scheduled more than 700 total flights.

“The 5 p.m. closure will allow the Airport to prepare the airfield and terminals, including the securing of jet bridges, ground equipment, and any remaining aircraft,” read a statement from Tampa International. “The Airport, including the Main Terminal, Airsides, and parking garages will be closed to all visitors at that time.”

A Southwest Airlines video board at Tampa International Airport shows Tuesday's canceled flights. (Chris O'Meara/)

Nearly 400 Wednesday flights involving Miami International Airport were also canceled as of Tuesday afternoon, but the airport remained open. Ian is not supposed to bring major damage to Miami, but it will likely block many flight paths into the city.

“MIA remains open and is not in the cone of concern,” the airport tweeted Monday. “Flight operations are determined by the FAA and each individual airline. If you’re traveling soon, we recommend contacting your airline for flight updates.”

On the other coast, Southwest Florida International Airport, just outside Fort Myers, was anticipating around 150 total flights on Wednesday before it announced an all-day closure.

Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, which had fewer than 50 total flights scheduled for Wednesday, announced it would close shop beginning at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Orlando Sanford Airport and even smaller operations at St. Pete-Clearwater and Key West also shut down.

Exactly when and where Ian will make landfall remains unclear, putting the Gulf Coast from Tampa to Naples into an uneasy state.

The various Florida airport closures had small impacts on New York airports. According to FlightAware data, LaGuardia, Kennedy and Newark airports all lost 6% to 7% of their outgoing flights and 5% to 6% of their incoming flights for Wednesday.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the Port Authority reported zero stranded passengers across the three airports.