Are Florida airports open or closed as Hurricane Milton approaches? Here's a rundown

Vinod Sreeharsha, Miami Herald on Oct 9, 2024

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MIAMI — A major South Florida airport announced it’s shutting down because of Hurricane Milton, with plans to “reopen when it’s safe to do so.”

Palm Beach International Airport will suspend flight operations at 9 p.m. Wednesday. Airport leaders say PBIA is not a shelter for people or cars.

The region’s other two major airports, Miami International and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International, remain open, although flights could be canceled or delayed.

Palm Beach International joins several other major Florida airports in ceasing operations as Milton approaches the Gulf Coast of Florida. The Tampa, Bradenton and Orlando airports also have announced shutdowns.

Here’s a rundown of what’s closed and when:

Tampa

The airport closed 9 a.m. Tuesday for an undetermined amount of time, advising travelers that the main terminals “will not be open for public use and is not equipped to function as a shelter for people or vehicles.” Emergency services will not be able to respond to calls or transport people to or from the airport.

Orlando

The airport is suspending commercial and private flights Wednesday morning, Oct. 9. There’s no word yet on a reopening day.

Sarasota-Bradenton

The airport closed 4 p.m. Tuesday.

St. Pete-Clearwater

The airport is closed through Thursday.

Key West

“The airport is open and operating as usual,” but flights could be affected.

Palm Beach

The airport is closing 9 p.m. Wednesday, with no reopening date scheduled.

Miami

The airport is open and operational and a “minimal impact on flights,” said Greg Chin, communications director for Miami-Dade Aviation Department. But he noted, “we may start seeing flights be affected” this week.

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood

The airport is open and operational. But anyone traveling through FLL should check with their airlines.

How can you check your flight status?

Miami International Airport has two online trackers you can use.

One of the flight trackers shows a list of all expected arrivals and departures with options to use a drop-down menu to narrow results. It displays the carrier, flight number and where the plane is going to or coming from. It also gives real-time updates on the flight’s arrival or departure status, which concourse the terminal is in and the location of baggage claim.

The other online tool lets you track by flight or route. If you know the carrier, the date and the flight number, this tool might be easier to use because it will only show information for your flight.

FLL’s flight tracker works by flight or route. You’ll need to know the date, along with the airline carrier and flight number or the departure and arrival airport. The tool also gives people the option to see a list of all expected arrivals and departures and details on the flight’s terminal and baggage claim, too.

Tampa International Airport — and Orlando International Airport — both have similar online trackers on their websites.

You can also check your flight status with the airline directly, which might be easier to do through the airline’s app. But you can also check via the airline’s website.