A total of 23 departing flights to SFO and 20 arriving flights from SFO have been confirmed canceled, according to LAX spokeswoman Nancy Castles.
Airlines that canceled flights between LAX and SFO are making arrangements for passengers, including rebooking flights, adding special flights if aircraft are available, bussing passengers to SFO, putting up passengers in airport-area hotels and asking passengers to return to LAX on Sunday.
According to Castles, Sunday's flights between LAX and SFO are heavily booked due to the combination of holiday weekend and peak summer travel. It is expected the airlines will need one or two days to catch up on the backlog of canceled flights.
The route between LAX and SFO is very busy, served by seven airlines including American, Delta, United, United Express, Virgin, US Airways and Southwest. But Saturday night's cancellations are making a big disruption for travelers on this holiday weekend. Some travelers will spend the night in L.A.
"I was flying from the mountains, connecting to L.A., and the plane crash in SFO prevented me from being able to fly back home today. So I am going to fly back home tomorrow," said Sara Brooks of San Francisco.
Officials say three international flights scheduled to land at SFO were diverted to LAX immediately after the plane crash. Two more were expected Saturday evening. One flight cleared its passengers in customs at LAX and is bussing those travelers back to San Francisco.
Travelers are advised to check with their airlines online or via telephone before heading to LAX.
