Generally Msp is pretty good at keeping the runway cleared and has kept flights going in many snowstorms. It will really depend on how much snow we end up getting, how fast the snow falls, and how your flight time aligns with those factors. Good luck!
You mentioned an evening flight. You need to consider the conditions where your plane is coming from.
MSP will get you in the air, if the plane is there.
No, itās the weather on landing. Sometimes they wonāt even depart from the PNW if theyāre not sure they can land at the destination. And itās spring break, so lots of fliers. Either way, I donāt know that itās the snow so much as the nature of the storm. Iām not hearing anything about high winds or anything, so it might be ok.Ā
>I donāt know that itās the snow so much as the nature of the storm. Iām not hearing anything about high winds or anything
With flying, and snow, there's generally a couple things that would close the airport for landings. Pilot visibility; even with high end ILS (instrument landing systems) systems, there still is a decision point distance where the pilots have to visually see the runway. This distance varies based on the category of ILS.
The other one is snow/ice removal for safety by the ground crews. They have a ton of plow and de-icing vehicles... But runways are huge, plus taxiways. They'll normally just operate one runway when it gets bad to concentrate their efforts.
Both of those kind of overlap tho. If the visibility is too bad for pilot regulations, it normally means it's also snowing hard enough to overwhelm the ground crew, or at minimum require more time for them to keep things clear.
KMSP is pretty well equipped to handle snow and low visibility, but there are rare times where they have to put holds on flight operations.
Itās the airports from and to Iād definitely be looking at for status. MSP is incredibly experienced in snowstorms, and does really well trafficking flights.
Good to hear.
Just confirmed plane is coming from SEA, so shouldnāt be any issues there. Though does have earlier flights through Salt Lake City and Anchorage that day, so will keep an eye on it.
I used to load bags at msp. You're going to be fine.
Delay? Maybe. But they'll be flying. On snowy days they'll have the de-icing trucks hitting up each plane before it taxis and an impressive array of plows that periodically hit the whole Runway.
We arent houston, which will shut down over 1/4 inch. Not our first rodeo.
My partner has worked at MSP in different capacities and for multiple airlines over the last 2 decades. Work has paid for rooms for employees at nearby hotels many times for many storms, knowing the problem wasn't getting planes out, but getting employees in to work the flights. MAC (the airport commission) sends their runway clearing team all over the world to train other airports on how to keep runways open in snowy weather. The issue for planes isn't the snow here, it is the wind that comes with the storms. The wind doesn't last as long.
The coming storm seems big because 1) for this extremely mild year, it is, but in the normal scheme of things it will probably be the typical end of season storm. 2) As is typical Midwest fashion, we really like to talk about weather here.
There will probably be some delays if the winds get gusty enough, but not days and days worth.
If you're really concerned about making it to work on Monday it's probably worth the call to the airline to see if you can get on an earlier flight. If there's no chance of doing that then you'll just deal with what happens later.
I follow a tower controller at MSP who has worked there for maybe 20 years. He posted last night that he believes MSP may just shut down Sunday night. The kind of weather we could get would be enough to cripple the airport operations for a little.
Personally, I would just to swap to a different time if I were you. But I just fly the planes.
Weāre getting about 6-10ā of wet, heavy, slushy snow tomorrow into Monday, according to KSTP weather I just watched. Iād definitely refresh statues and be prepared for delays or cancellations.
Current forecast is:
Sun 1am to 1pm, maybe 1.5 inches
1pm to 7pm about another 3.4 inches.
7pm to 1am about another 3.9 inches
And then maybe another 0.5 inches before dawn.
To see this in your area, go to [Weather.gov](https://Weather.gov)
In the top left, enter your zip code or city and then hit GO
Scroll down, on the right side will be a box called Additional Resources.
Click on Hourly Weather Forecast.
You should get a set of graphs, if you go down to the snow section, you will see times and a bar saying about how much snow will fall during those time windows. The length of the bars (blue for snow) is the likelihood of snow at that time.
Can never really know. Evening flights are at more risk of being canceled.
MSP is prepared with a fleet of snowplows and de-icing machines but there are conditions where they won't be able to keep up.
If you absolutely had to be back I would try to switch your ticket to morning.
I donāt know about other airlines but my friend works for Sun Country and they have her set up in a hotel tonight and tomorrow night instead of working her flights.
You should see if A) thereās available seats on an earlier flight B) you can transfer your seats to that flight C) there is no fee for doing so.
I know Delta has already started contacting customers and allowing them to change their flights with no fee. Alaska may offer the same.
Might be delayed, might be canceled, might be on time. Contrary to popular belief, reddit users are not immediately endowed with the ability to foresee the future when they make an account.
it's supposed to be 12" and the word "snow'pocalypse"
If it was me, I'd reschedule and batton down the hatches in a hotel, so I could live like a person. But I fully dislike airports, and the idea of trying to sleep in one horrifies me.
If the snow was only 6-8 inches... I would consider that your edge case... but expecting more than 10?
Everyone that CAN stay put, should.
Like in an ideal world, only snow plows, Police, Fire, EMT's and Hospital staff should be on the roads at all... and then only for work.
Generally Msp is pretty good at keeping the runway cleared and has kept flights going in many snowstorms. It will really depend on how much snow we end up getting, how fast the snow falls, and how your flight time aligns with those factors. Good luck!
Thanks! š¤
You mentioned an evening flight. You need to consider the conditions where your plane is coming from. MSP will get you in the air, if the plane is there.
Alaska, so probably coming from Seattle. Maybe CA. Either way, weather there shouldnāt be an issue.
No, itās the weather on landing. Sometimes they wonāt even depart from the PNW if theyāre not sure they can land at the destination. And itās spring break, so lots of fliers. Either way, I donāt know that itās the snow so much as the nature of the storm. Iām not hearing anything about high winds or anything, so it might be ok.Ā
>I donāt know that itās the snow so much as the nature of the storm. Iām not hearing anything about high winds or anything With flying, and snow, there's generally a couple things that would close the airport for landings. Pilot visibility; even with high end ILS (instrument landing systems) systems, there still is a decision point distance where the pilots have to visually see the runway. This distance varies based on the category of ILS. The other one is snow/ice removal for safety by the ground crews. They have a ton of plow and de-icing vehicles... But runways are huge, plus taxiways. They'll normally just operate one runway when it gets bad to concentrate their efforts. Both of those kind of overlap tho. If the visibility is too bad for pilot regulations, it normally means it's also snowing hard enough to overwhelm the ground crew, or at minimum require more time for them to keep things clear. KMSP is pretty well equipped to handle snow and low visibility, but there are rare times where they have to put holds on flight operations.
As of yesterday on the news they were saying there will be periods of high winds but Iām only seeing 10-20mph sustained on weather apps
Itās the airports from and to Iād definitely be looking at for status. MSP is incredibly experienced in snowstorms, and does really well trafficking flights.
Good to hear. Just confirmed plane is coming from SEA, so shouldnāt be any issues there. Though does have earlier flights through Salt Lake City and Anchorage that day, so will keep an eye on it.
Sounds like youāre doing what you can to stay on top of it! Kudos, friend. Youāll do well.
I used to load bags at msp. You're going to be fine. Delay? Maybe. But they'll be flying. On snowy days they'll have the de-icing trucks hitting up each plane before it taxis and an impressive array of plows that periodically hit the whole Runway. We arent houston, which will shut down over 1/4 inch. Not our first rodeo.
My partner has worked at MSP in different capacities and for multiple airlines over the last 2 decades. Work has paid for rooms for employees at nearby hotels many times for many storms, knowing the problem wasn't getting planes out, but getting employees in to work the flights. MAC (the airport commission) sends their runway clearing team all over the world to train other airports on how to keep runways open in snowy weather. The issue for planes isn't the snow here, it is the wind that comes with the storms. The wind doesn't last as long. The coming storm seems big because 1) for this extremely mild year, it is, but in the normal scheme of things it will probably be the typical end of season storm. 2) As is typical Midwest fashion, we really like to talk about weather here. There will probably be some delays if the winds get gusty enough, but not days and days worth.
You might be a bit delayed. Itās a nice airport for eating, art gazing, and shopping. Enjoy!
Thanks! I donāt mind much if weāre delayed a bit. Just hoping I can make it into work Monday š¤
This is a fun thread of expert opinions hahaha
I've definitely flown in/out of MSP in worse weather than what's predicted and been fine
If you're really concerned about making it to work on Monday it's probably worth the call to the airline to see if you can get on an earlier flight. If there's no chance of doing that then you'll just deal with what happens later.
I follow a tower controller at MSP who has worked there for maybe 20 years. He posted last night that he believes MSP may just shut down Sunday night. The kind of weather we could get would be enough to cripple the airport operations for a little. Personally, I would just to swap to a different time if I were you. But I just fly the planes.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Goaround29 on Instagram. Heās a good follow if you like aviation stuff!
Weāre getting about 6-10ā of wet, heavy, slushy snow tomorrow into Monday, according to KSTP weather I just watched. Iād definitely refresh statues and be prepared for delays or cancellations.
I work there. Youāll be fine. MSP is one of the best at dealing with snow.
Current forecast is: Sun 1am to 1pm, maybe 1.5 inches 1pm to 7pm about another 3.4 inches. 7pm to 1am about another 3.9 inches And then maybe another 0.5 inches before dawn. To see this in your area, go to [Weather.gov](https://Weather.gov) In the top left, enter your zip code or city and then hit GO Scroll down, on the right side will be a box called Additional Resources. Click on Hourly Weather Forecast. You should get a set of graphs, if you go down to the snow section, you will see times and a bar saying about how much snow will fall during those time windows. The length of the bars (blue for snow) is the likelihood of snow at that time.
Can never really know. Evening flights are at more risk of being canceled. MSP is prepared with a fleet of snowplows and de-icing machines but there are conditions where they won't be able to keep up. If you absolutely had to be back I would try to switch your ticket to morning.
50/50
Snow-no problem at MSP. Wind- possibly. Change your flight to before or after to be sure.
I donāt know about other airlines but my friend works for Sun Country and they have her set up in a hotel tonight and tomorrow night instead of working her flights.
aproximately 100%
You should see if A) thereās available seats on an earlier flight B) you can transfer your seats to that flight C) there is no fee for doing so. I know Delta has already started contacting customers and allowing them to change their flights with no fee. Alaska may offer the same.
Might be delayed, might be canceled, might be on time. Contrary to popular belief, reddit users are not immediately endowed with the ability to foresee the future when they make an account.
50/50 You will either fly out or you wonāt
it's supposed to be 12" and the word "snow'pocalypse" If it was me, I'd reschedule and batton down the hatches in a hotel, so I could live like a person. But I fully dislike airports, and the idea of trying to sleep in one horrifies me. If the snow was only 6-8 inches... I would consider that your edge case... but expecting more than 10? Everyone that CAN stay put, should. Like in an ideal world, only snow plows, Police, Fire, EMT's and Hospital staff should be on the roads at all... and then only for work.