Perspective from a safe place

Susan Kelleher of Philadelphia was stranded in Atlanta after she and her husband traveled there Friday for a wedding. After seeing their US Airways flights to Philadelphia canceled a couple times while they played unexpected tourists in Atlanta on Monday, the next flight home wasn't going to be available until Thursday, November 1.

So they decided to change their destination. US Airways allowed the couple to change their flight. Instead of landing in Philadelphia on Tuesday, they flew first to Charlotte and then to Richmond, Virginia. There, they rented a car for the five-hour drive home.

"The airline has been more than accommodating with vouchers," said Kelleher. "They're losing money on this, and they were happy to check all kinds of different alternatives for you."

"Up and down the East Coast, my people are fine and I am so grateful for that," she said.

A much more serious delay

The delay had become more serious for Norman Auerbach, 66, who took a trip to New York City last weekend to see his son and grandchildren before he was scheduled to undergo a heart bypass and mitral valve repair in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Friday.

His planned flight back with JetBlue on Monday and another flight on Wednesday were both canceled. After countless calls trying to get through to the airline to rebook, he got booked on a JetBlue flight from LaGuardia Saturday night that lands in the early hours -- too late for his surgery.

That's when he posted a Twitter message to JetBlue about his dilemma. When CNN called JetBlue, a customer support team member contacted Auerbach and booked him on a Thursday morning flight home out of Newark.

"I was really impressed with her efforts and also her follow up, WOW!" he wrote Wednesday night, in an email to CNN. "I was also amazed at the power of Twitter ... It's a whole new dimension in communication and collaboration."

JetBlue customers needing special assistance can call a special needs phone number (855-ADA-LINE or 855-232-5463). Many other airlines have similar numbers posted on their websites.