Photos of the Week: Hurricane Milton Closes Florida’s Airports

Hurricane Milton recently battered Florida as the storm made its way across the state – the second such hurricane in a matter of weeks.

The hurricane caused deaths and billions of dollars in damage across the state – and forced the closure of several busy airports including Tampa (TPA), Orlando (MCO), Orlando Sanford (SFB), Southwest Florida (RSW), Sarasota (SRQ), and others.

Airports are natural places for crisis response readiness. First responders and operations teams at airports regularly train for incidents. The hard-working teams at airports across Florida got their airports open in a matter of days – safely and quickly for passengers.

Tampa International Airport sustained damage to one of its hangars in the wake of Hurricane Milton’s powerful winds. (Courtesy of Tampa International Airport)

Several of the airports shared on social media photos of some of the damage Milton left behind and their operational response. In our lead photos, members of Tampa International Airport’s operations team survey damage and flooding on the airfield and damage to a hangar.

Down below, Orlando International Airport posted a look inside their operations center during the storm.

Our thoughts are with our colleagues in all of the impacted areas as they cleanup in the aftermath of the storms.

Although we snagged these photos from our colleagues’ social media accounts, our readers continue to pass along shots of unique aircraft, international airports, historical events, gorgeous views, and family vacation photos as submissions for this weekly feature. Click here for submission guidelines.

A rare view inside the operations center at Orlando International Airport during Hurricane Milton. (Courtesy of Orlando International Airport)