HEBRON, Ky. — After a three-day travel ordeal, Cincinnati resident Stephyn Ward is happy to be home.
"It is the worst travel experience I've ever had," Ward said.
Ward's nightmare began with what was supposed to be a simple day trip to Dallas on Friday.
"Well, I flew out of Cincinnati on Friday. I was planning on flying back Friday night. By the time I got to Dallas, they canceled my Friday night flight and rescheduled me for the next morning on Frontier," Ward said.
But the problems were just beginning. When Ward arrived at the airport Saturday morning, his rescheduled flight had been canceled as well.
"Rearranged another flight to leave, like three hours later, and it was in like, a different terminal, so I had to go all the way to that terminal," Ward said. "And then from that terminal, they delayed that flight, and I waited another three hours, and then at the end of that three hours, they canceled that flight."
Ward had to retrieve his luggage and find a hotel for another night. He returned to the airport Sunday morning, where agents booked him for a flight home Monday.
When Ward was back on local ground, he was met with another headache.
"Suitcase I've only had for like two months, and it was busted completely. Whole corner was busted out, and I had a computer inside. I mean, there's no way I could use it again," Ward said. "You put so much money into stuff like this, and then just having these guys just toss it around like it's garbage. It's just not right."
WATCH: Hear Tri-State residents describe their nightmare experiences trying to fly home
Cincinnati resident Chrissy Collet had a similar nightmare experience. Flying with her 86-year-old mother-in-law and special needs daughter, she endured multiple delays in Orlando.
"Supposed to leave at 3:25 p.m. yesterday, and on the way to the airport, you know, get there early, they said there's a delay, okay, but no big deal. Just a couple hours," Collet said. "And then, as we're at the airport, it just constantly kept getting delayed... And then the last one was, like, 2:22 a.m., so I was like, 'I can't do it.' And this is like four o'clock by this time. So we've been there a few hours."
Desperate to get home, Collet started looking for alternative flights.
"And I started walking around Frontier, and I saw different flights, and I was like, okay, what's the closest to Cincinnati? So I found — I checked Cleveland. There was another flight from Cincinnati leaving at nine something. It was booked, so I'm frantic," Collet said. "And then finally, Indianapolis was leaving. When I talked to the ticket agent, she was like, 'They're boarding now.' It was like six something. Yeah, they got us on. We got on the flight, but we had to leave our luggage."
The ordeal didn't end there. Collet had to rent a car to drive from Indianapolis to Cincinnati, facing steep fees for the one-way rental.
"We're paying like, $600," Collet said. "My husband and I are like, 'Should we drive to Indianapolis and take the car back? And we're just like, 'I can't do it. I can't do it.' So, we're gonna have to pay the $650 to leave it here."
At Orlando International Airport, Collet witnessed the widespread frustration among stranded passengers.
"At Orlando, people are miserable and then trying to get food? There's just people everywhere, just sleeping, huge lines to get food, and cranky people. I just could overhear conversations. Just, yeah, they were not, not happy," Collet said.
The disruptions affecting Tri-State travelers are part of a nationwide crisis. Air travel disruptions continued Tuesday across the United States, with more than 1,200 flights canceled as the Federal Aviation Administration continues to limit capacity at 40 major U.S. airports amid the government shutdown.
4% flight reductions went into effect Friday. Cuts inched up to 6% on Tuesday, with plans to increase to 10% by Friday.
More than 2,900 flights within, into or out of the United States also were delayed Tuesday, according to FlightAware. At least 849 flights planned for Wednesday have also already been canceled, FlightAware said.
There were 19 delays at CVG by 5:00 p.m. Tuesday. Another 20 flights had been canceled. More than a dozen flights scheduled for Wednesday have already been canceled.
Chicago O'Hare International Airport had the highest number of cancellations Tuesday morning, with more than 60 flights canceled before 5 a.m. local time, ABC News reported. More than 300 flights were canceled at the Midwest hub Monday, in part because of heavy snowfall.
Staffing shortages at some of the biggest airport hubs and a federal mandate to limit flight capacity are grounding planes and leaving travelers stranded.
Even if the government reopens this week, federal officials say travelers could still be feeling the impacts for weeks.
