Nineteen United Airlines departures canceled and another 10 delayed. That was the situation at 4 p.m. at Washington Dulles International Airport during my shift last Friday. Summer is notorious on the East Coast for late afternoon and evening thundershowers. If lightning comes within 10 miles of the airport, operations are shut down. This kind of weather is the cause of delays and cancellations. It brings about intense frustration from the traveling public: delayed flights, missed connections, upended plans.

That afternoon most inbound flights from Europe were delayed because they were rerouted through western New York to avoid storms. This caused the outbound flights using the same aircraft to be delayed as well. A young woman on the delayed flight to Brussels was scheduled to connect there with a flight to Kigali, Rwanda. The projected delay would leave her scarcely an hour to make her connection. Her flight from Brussels, on Brussels Airlines, was the only non-stop flight from Europe to Kigali. All other alternatives involved two to three stops and at least one extra day of travel. We suggested she see the United Airlines ticketing representatives.

When passengers get stranded because of bad weather, the airline usually does not pay for a hotel room. Travelers Aid representatives have information to help these people secure hotel rooms near the airport, often at discounted prices.

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A flight arriving from Aruba had many connecting passengers from Denver. Many were traveling standby and rushed to the gate for the next Denver flight. They were hoping the bad weather might cause other travelers to miss their flight and, thus, there might be some open seats. Otherwise, they would have to wait until the 10 p.m. flight, which had many open seats.

Some of the passengers from the Aruba flight didn’t rush at all. Two of them asked about restaurants that were open. I asked, “Didn’t they feed you on that flight?” And the answer was, “Yes, but it’s not Potbelly.” They were craving food from Potbelly restaurant.

The most amusing thing that happens at this location — where people from international flights arrive in the terminal to connect with domestic flights — is when you ask, “Do you know where you need to go for your next flight?” Many of them say, “I’m good!” or “I’ve got this.” And then they walk off in the wrong direction. Or I’ll ask a couple if they need help, and the man says, “No” and the woman says, “Yes.”

The best way to avoid sitting on a delayed flight wondering if you will make your connection is to leave plenty of time between flights. One pilot on a flight I was on during a delay for thunderstorms announced apologetically, “Ladies and gentlemen, there’s an old saying in the airline business: When you have time to spare, go by air!”

— Marvin Singer, a volunteer with Travelers Aid and a member of GT’s Globility Board