March storms spurred airline cancellations

If you had an airline trip planned in March and your flight was canceled, you were not alone.

The severe winter storms in the Midwest and East Coast in March were responsible for a spike in flight cancellations and delays, lost luggage, passenger complaints and paid fliers denied seats, according to a new federal report.

The on-time arrival rate dropped to 77.6% in March, compared to 79.8% in the same month in 2013, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. In March, 1.95% of scheduled flights, or 9,848 total flights, were canceled, the highest rate for that month since 2009, the bureau reported.

The severe weather also played havoc with other airline service categories.

The rate of lost, damaged or pilfered luggage jumped to 3.68% in March, compared to 3.03% in same month last year. The percentage of passengers denied boarding because airlines overbooked a flight jumped to 1.4%, compared to 1.04% last March.

Passenger complaints for the month also rose to 1,119, compared to 945 last March, according to the bureau. The most common complaint involved flight cancellations, delays and missed connections.