Travel delays raise concerns for Thunder Ridge concertgoers

GREENE COUNTY, Missouri — Major airlines including Delta, United, American and Allegiant were grounded this morning, impacting travelers across the country, including here in Springfield.

While some people traveling this weekend aren’t too worried about delays, others have serious concerns about reaching their destinations. This is especially true for those who are coming to the region on Sunday for the Rolling Stones concert at Thunder Ridge Nature Arena.

Jan Taylor arrived at the airport today knowing her first flight would be delayed, but she is more concerned about what awaits her at larger airports.

“My first leg of my flight stops in Atlanta. So a major hub. So I’m expecting some serious delays. I haven’t had any so far,” Taylor said. “The only notification I’ve gotten is that the flight, my arrival in Atlanta from here, is going to be delayed.”

Taylor said flight delays aren’t the end of the world for her.

“I’ve tried not to panic, but fortunately I don’t have anything planned for the next day or two, so if there are any delays, it won’t be a serious problem.”

The power outage is causing problems across the country, but is also causing concern for people traveling to the Ozarks on Sunday for The Rolling Stones concert.

Jill Reynolds works for Branson Taxi and helps people all over the country arrange transportation to the concert.

So I started getting calls around 6:30 in the morning from people all over the country flying in for the last Rolling Stones concert, The Last. They were buying thousands of dollars worth of tickets.”

Springfield-Branson National Airport has seen fewer delays throughout the day. Airport Operations Manager Chuck Cowan says things will improve in the coming days.

“So yeah, it’s starting to thin out a little bit because it was pretty busy here before,” Cowan said. “I think it’s going to get better as it gets better. So it just depends on which airline and how quickly they recover.”