Showing a fierce burst of power long before any of Hurricane Isabel's mighty gusts made landfall, the stubborn storm has started to ground many airline flights. US Airways bowed first, calling off nearly 400 East Coast flights last night with others lining up behind it on the cancellation runway.
How the storm rattles the books of publicly traded carriers such as AMR (NYSE:AMR) and Delta (NYSE:DAL) remains to be seen. As the largest carrier at Baltimore-Washington Airport, Southwest (NYSE:LUV) is clearly vulnerable.
However, for those who feel that after bleeding through billions of dollars over the past few years that today's grounded flights will spell more gloom and doom for the sector's itinerary, get real. Today's blip is a temporary weather-related closure that will likely be partly offset by higher capacity over the next few days as the carriers resume their schedules.
No, the major airlines aren't flying anywhere near the number of flights that they were logging before 9/11, but a lot of that demand pie has been carved out by such low-cost carriers as JetBlue (NASDAQ:JBLU).
Besides, while it would be hard to argue much of a case in favor of buying into the airline industry for the long haul, the stocks have had a pretty good run down the fiscal tarmac lately. JetBlue and Delta have both roughly tripled off their 52-week lows, and AMR has actually been a 10-bagger since it shook off its bankruptcy demons back in March.
So, yes, score today's groundings on Isabel, but the air carriers have every right to reschedule the last laugh.
If you're looking to get away once Isabel blows over, why not check out our Travel Center, ripe with travel tips and money-saving suggestions.
Have the low-cost carriers put you in a discounting mind-set every time you want to book a flight? How far does an alternative airport have to be before the cut-rate savings are squandered? Where are the bargains today? All this and more -- in the Cheap Air Fares discussion board . Only on Fool.com.
