STORMS AHEAD
Weather expert reveals the flight you should never book during the summer – or risk it being cancelled
Expert who broke his own rule ended up stranded at the airport
A WEATHER expert has revealed the flight you should never book during the summer or risk it being cancelled.
Meteorologist Chris Bianchi has advised travellers to avoid booking an afternoon or evening flight in the United States during the summer months.
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This is due to an increased risk of thunderstorms during these periods of time.
Mr Bianchi, a meteorologist with NBC affiliate 9News in Denver, said: "Never book a flight in the afternoon, or especially, at night during the summertime months in the United States.
“The chances of there being a thunderstorm somewhere in the United States in the afternoon or evening are pretty high during the summertime months… if you get a thunderstorm in the wrong place and it impacts your flight, you could be completely screwed.”
And when the expert made the mistake of breaking his own rule, he found himself stranded at New York City’s LaGuardia Airport during the early hours of the morning.
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The TikTok star also encouraged travellers to use flight radar apps like FlightAware and Flightradar24 to track their inbound flights.
He added: "Let’s say you’re flying from New York to Miami and your flight is coming from Chicago or it’s coming from Minneapolis, check the weather in those places.
“Because if there’s weather in those places, there’s a pretty good chance your flight… is going to get impacted as a result.”
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The expert also suggested booking a back-up flight as an insurance policy.
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He said: "Otherwise, dear folks, you’ll end up like me: some dude doing a TikTok at a deserted Terminal B of LaGuardia Airport at 1:45 in the morning waiting patiently for my 4 a.m. flight back home to Denver.”
Travel consultants at eShores have revealed their top tips for passengers to ensure their passport isn’t rejected at the airport and they can go away as planned this summer.
Firstly, they advise against getting novelty souvenir stamps that could lead to problems on future trips.
Some destinations offer novelty stamps for passports, but they may impact travel in the future, so it's best not to get them.
Those stamps are not officially recognised and may be considered alteration or defacement, which can lead to a passport being rejected.
Water damage is also a big problem for travellers.
Passports with significant water damage are often deemed invalid for travel, especially if information is obscured or the laminate has started to lift.