What does the law say about the rights of travelers in the event of flight cancellations?
6:20
(CNN) --
More than 6,000 flights into, into or out of the United States have been canceled so far this week as freezing weather affects large swaths of the country.
This Thursday afternoon, 6,238 flight cancellations were registered on the FlightAware flight tracking site since Monday, including more than 700 cancellations on Thursday alone.
Operations have been hit hardest at three Texas airports: Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW), Dallas Love Field (DAL) and Austin Bergstrom International (AUS).
More than half of the canceled flights so far this week, more than 3,200, have originated or ended in DFW, including at least 500 this Thursday.
The most affected airlines are also based in Texas, specifically American (whose headquarters is near DFW) and Southwest (whose headquarters is in Dallas).
What should I do if my flight is canceled or delayed?
American's operations experienced the biggest disruption on Thursday, with more than 400 flight cancellations, or about 13% of its itinerary.
Southwest had far fewer cancellations on Thursday: about 70 flights, or 1% of its itinerary.
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Southwest Airlines issued a winter weather waiver at a dozen airports in Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Arkansas and Kentucky.
The waiver applies to affected travel between January 30 and February 2.
American Airlines' waiver includes nearly 20 airports for travel between January 29 and February 3.
DFW Airport said on Twitter Wednesday that it "continues to mitigate the impacts of the current winter weather in the area."
Travelers are advised to check with their airlines on the status of their flights before going to the airport.
-- CNN's Marnie Hunter and Lilit Marcus contributed to this report.
canceled flights