Southwest's Hobby Ops Shuttered Until Tuesday; IAH Operations Resume Monday

A number of airlines with a significant presence in Houston, TX plan to resume operations from that city's two commercial airports within the next 48 hours, with most resuming service Monday after the area got slammed by Hurricane Ike over the weekend.

The most severe damage reported at Bush Intercontinental Airport, about 30 miles north of downtown Houston, appeared to be at the Sheraton Hotel North Houston, about a mile from the terminal. The hotel had its atrium roof and lobby damaged.

Continental Airlines, which calls IAH its home, planned to operate the vast majority of its mainline schedule to and from IAH starting Monday morning, with the arrival of the first flight at 0533 CDT. The first departure was at 0630.

Continental Express and Continental Connection flights to and from the Houston hub would operate on reduced schedules Monday, due largely to damage sustained to Terminal B at IAH. Continental is flying employees from other domestic locations to Houston, to assist with the cleanup effort and return to service.

"I know that my co-workers have gone through many sacrifices and hardships to try to return their personal lives to normalcy after Hurricane Ike, and they've helped each other and our customers in that effort," said Larry Kellner, Continental's chairman and CEO. "I want to thank them for all they've done... As always, make sure your personal safety and the safety of our co-workers and customers is your top priority."

A nighttime curfew now in effect throughout Houston does not apply to airport employees driving to and from IAH, Continental said, citing the Mayor's Office of Public Safety and Homeland Security.

Across town at Houston Hobby -- the hardest hit of the city's two airports, with a loss of all commercial AC power Saturday -- JetBlue said it would resume its daily operations Monday. However, Southwest Airlines -- by far the largest presence at HOU -- said it will be Tuesday before that airline resumes "limited" operations... and that depends on a number of factors, including how quickly water damage and broken glass can be repaired.

"Since the storm's passing, the airline continues to focus its attention on ensuring the safety of its Houston Employees and Customers and on assessing the condition of its airport facilities," Southwest said in a prepared statement. "The airline's ultimate plans to resume a full schedule in Houston will depend upon the status of airport security personnel and facilities, as well as clear access to the airport and passenger services in the wake of the storm."

The carrier also suspended its operations Saturday afternoon from Dallas Love Field, as the remnants of Ike approached the DFW metroplex. Southwest resumed flights from DAL Saturday at 1700 CDT.

FMI: www.continental.com, www.jetblue.com, www.southwest.com