Monster Storm to Hit Northeast U.S.: Airlines and Airports Prepare for Disrupted Travel

With reports of a potentially historic snowstorm predicted to pummel the Northeast Friday night, airlines and airports are planning in advance.

TODAY meteorologist Al Roker predicted that up to a foot of snow would fall in New York City, and more than two feet in Boston - what he called a "monster storm." The predicted snow comes from a "clipper system" moving through the upper Midwest and a low-pressure system headed for the waters of New England. The two, joined together, could make for the region's heaviest snowfall in two years, NBC News reported.

Chicago O'Hare International Airport is already preparing -- according to FlightAware.com, the airport already cancelled more than 130 incoming and outgoing flights on Thursday, and more than 70 were already cancelled for Friday.

At Newark Liberty International Airport, more than 400 flights were cancelled for Friday - and at Boston Logan, 100 were.

American, Delta, United, JetBlue, Southwest and U.S. Airways said they would wave their fees to change flights (which are usually up to $150) -- or relax their change-fee policies -- for people going through Northeast airports, including Boston-Logan and New York's Kennedy and LaGuardia, NBC News reported.

The airlines are keeping a close eye on the weather conditions. "We're monitoring the weather system closely and will adjust our operations accordingly," Allison Steinberg, a spokeswoman for JetBlue Airways, told NBC News.

Delta told NBC News in a statement that it urges passengers to take advantage of waivers. "Delta is closely monitoring conditions along the storm's forecast path and encourages customers to consider moving up, postponing or re-routing their travel to avoid possible inconvenience from expected flight delays," the airline said.

And Southwest Airlines stated that some flights could be "delayed, diverted or cancelled," according to NBC News.

Amtrak also cancelled some runs of its Downeaster train line, which runs from Brunswick, Maine, south to Boston, NBC News reported.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey told NBC News that it is assembling its "winter weather arsenal" -- which includes 200 pieces of snow and ice equipment at the airports, and snow-clearing plows that operate at 40 miles per hour.