Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) confirmed on 23 February that an intense nor’easter battering the north-eastern United States has obliged the carrier to cancel nine rotations linking Zurich and Geneva with New York (JFK), Newark, and Boston. The decision affects four Sunday services and five Monday services after New York-area airports activated irregular-operations protocols and Boston Logan closed a runway for de-icing. (swissinfo.ch)
While SWISS says no further cancellations are currently planned, the airline has warned that residual delays could ripple through its long-haul network for 24–36 hours because wide-body aircraft and crews are out of position. Corporate travel managers with tight Monday-morning connections have been advised to rebook onto the Tuesday bank of departures or route via Chicago, where operations remain stable.
For passengers suddenly rerouted through alternative hubs or needing updated travel documents on short notice, VisaHQ’s Switzerland portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) offers an easy way to check visa requirements and secure e-visas or transit permits online. The service can cut down on last-minute stress by handling consular paperwork while you focus on rebooking flights and hotels.
![Blizzard in US Forces SWISS to Cancel Nine Trans-Atlantic Flights]()
Under EU261 and Switzerland’s own air-passenger-rights ordinance, travellers are entitled to duty-of-care (hotel and meals) but not to financial compensation because the disruption is classed as an ‘extraordinary circumstance’. SWISS has set up a dedicated help desk and is automatically re-issuing tickets via the Amadeus system; no change fees apply. (swissinfo.ch)
Local airports are also responding. Zurich Airport has activated additional passport-control booths this evening to cope with re-booked passengers funnelled onto Schengen feeders, while Geneva Airport is waiving overnight parking charges for rental-car drop-offs. Ground-handler Swissport told clients its cargo shed remains open, but perishables arriving from the US East Coast will now route through Philadelphia before truck-transfer to Switzerland.
The episode is a reminder for mobility managers to keep winter-weather clauses in travel policies robust and to pre-approve alternative routings. Companies with time-sensitive staff movements—such as pharma sample couriers based in Basel—should consider dual hubs (e.g., Munich or Paris) when building contingency plans.
While SWISS says no further cancellations are currently planned, the airline has warned that residual delays could ripple through its long-haul network for 24–36 hours because wide-body aircraft and crews are out of position. Corporate travel managers with tight Monday-morning connections have been advised to rebook onto the Tuesday bank of departures or route via Chicago, where operations remain stable.
For passengers suddenly rerouted through alternative hubs or needing updated travel documents on short notice, VisaHQ’s Switzerland portal (https://www.visahq.com/switzerland/) offers an easy way to check visa requirements and secure e-visas or transit permits online. The service can cut down on last-minute stress by handling consular paperwork while you focus on rebooking flights and hotels.
Under EU261 and Switzerland’s own air-passenger-rights ordinance, travellers are entitled to duty-of-care (hotel and meals) but not to financial compensation because the disruption is classed as an ‘extraordinary circumstance’. SWISS has set up a dedicated help desk and is automatically re-issuing tickets via the Amadeus system; no change fees apply. (swissinfo.ch)
Local airports are also responding. Zurich Airport has activated additional passport-control booths this evening to cope with re-booked passengers funnelled onto Schengen feeders, while Geneva Airport is waiving overnight parking charges for rental-car drop-offs. Ground-handler Swissport told clients its cargo shed remains open, but perishables arriving from the US East Coast will now route through Philadelphia before truck-transfer to Switzerland.
The episode is a reminder for mobility managers to keep winter-weather clauses in travel policies robust and to pre-approve alternative routings. Companies with time-sensitive staff movements—such as pharma sample couriers based in Basel—should consider dual hubs (e.g., Munich or Paris) when building contingency plans.
