SEATTLE — Over 100 flights have been canceled at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and another 100 have been delayed as snow moves through western Washington.
There were 182 flights canceled and over 400 delayed flights at Sea-Tac by around 4 p.m. on Tuesday, according to FlightAware, which tracks flights daily for major airports across the world.
According to Sea-Tac spokesperson Perry Cooper, there are typically about 1,200 flights per day this time of year.
Lowland snow in Seattle and surrounding areas fell Tuesday morning as several weather systems moved throughout the region. Snow levels are expected to hover between 400 and 800 feet throughout the week.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a ground delay at 9 a.m. at the airport, pushing back flights on average by 34 minutes. Crews started spraying de-icing fluid to remove snow and ice at about 8 a.m., according to the FAA. The ground stop was canceled about noon.
The ground delay was cancelled at 6 p.m. on Tuesday.
A spokesperson for Alaska Airlines said flight operations will be impacted Tuesday and throughout the week. The airline said it has "proactively thinned our schedule" to get ahead of the winter conditions.
Alaska Airlines said additional cancellations are possible as officials assess the weather's impact on operations. Guests with impact flights have been contacted and re-accommodated to other flights and a waiver has been given to people who want to adjust their travel themselves, the airline spokesperson said. Customers are advised to visit Alaska Airlines' website or use the app to make flight adjustments.
Watch live: Snow radar in western Washington
A spokesperson for Sea-Tac Airport said cancellations can happen for several reasons and are not just related to the weather.
The airport does not typically get big crowds of people inside during storms or cancellations, however, because Sea-Tac is known as an "origination and destination" airport, the spokesperson said in a statement. This means up to 75% of traffic either begins or ends at Sea-Tac. That differs from airports in Los Angeles, Denver or Chicago where they have a larger percentage of connecting passengers that typically have the biggest struggles in severe weather situations.