DALLAS, Texas — Planning a wedding is plenty stressful on its own.
But sprinkle in all this chaos surrounding Southwest Airlines? Well, that is an equation for maximum anxiety.
Bride-to-be Wendi Reichstein is at the center of it all as she and her fiance Rabbi Aaron Sataloff face quite the pickle this week thanks to the Dallas-based airline's meltdown sparked by Winter Storm Elliott.
On Wednesday, as of 1 PM, out of the 2,844 airline cancelations nationwide, an estimated 2,509 were operated by Southwest.
That data, according to FlightAware, shows that Southwest accounts for roughly 88% of all canceled flights in the United States. All the other airlines combined make up the remaining 12%.
Sataloff's flight from Fort Lauderdale to Houston was among the flights canceled Wednesday.
He and Reichstein get married in Houston on Saturday and getting rebooked promptly, as WFAA has reported, has been a nightmare for Southwest passengers.
Some have told WFAA that the airline isn't able to get them on another flight until the weekend.
Clearly, you can understand Reichstein's frustration: a wedding can't happen without the groom.
"I was mentally prepared for little things to happen here and there," Reichstein told WFAA. "I wasn't mentally prepared that the groom might not make it to the wedding."
Luckily, Reichstein is a keeper.
As Southwest struggled to reboot, she booked a backup flight on another airline for her fiance just in case he was canceled.
Thankfully, her fiance is on his way to the altar via a separate flight with United.
"This was our wedding and I didn't want to leave anything up to chance," Reichstein said. "I proactively booked him just in case this would happen."
And the groom isn't the only one facing similar hurdles. His parents' flight was canceled, along with his sister's and brother-in-law's flight.
"His sister and brother-in-law weren't able to rebook due to the prices, so they hit the road and are driving 16 hours to make it here in time for the wedding," Reichstein said. "On Tuesday morning, Aaron's parents' flight was canceled but thankfully they were able to get on another flight."
"But they aren't the only ones--I have roughly 10 people up in the air right now telling me they're renting a car just in case or trying to get another flight. Not knowing what the next few days are going to hold, is very frustrating."
"I have a cousin who flew in earlier this week," Reichstein continued, "but his luggage is stuck in Las Vegas so he had to go rent a tux."
Reichstein told WFAA she's a longtime Southwest fan and is disappointed.
While she tries to stay positive, she can't help but think that the most memorable week of her life is becoming even more memorable by the second.
"As long as my fiance is here on the ground in Houston," she laughed nervously.