Flights to and from the US were thrown into chaos yesterday as Hurricane Floyd pressed its way north after striking North Carolina just before dawn. American Airlines had to cancel the New York-bound flight from Bermuda at 1 p.m. and the return flight in the evening. Morning flights were unaffected and the Bermuda to Boston route just after midday also survived.

American Airlines acting general manager Judy Butterfield said yesterday: "We have rebooked all our passengers but we are not sure what the situation will be on Friday.'' The morning and afternoon Continental flights from Newark arrived on the Island but were not allowed to return. They are scheduled to return to the US at 8 a.m. today.

Yesterday's Delta flight from Atlanta which usually then heads to Boston was instead sent back to Atlanta.

Bermuda Airport general manager Marshall Minors said: "The cancellations haven't caused a problem as far as the airport is concerned. It just meant the airlines had to cancel flights because Floyd is sitting on New York. "We expect to get the flights running again tomorrow because the speed Floyd is moving at means that it should have moved away by then.'' Hundreds of flights in New York and Washington D.C., were cancelled.

A spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said there were "numerous'' cancellations and delays at John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport, and said 75 to 100 flights were cancelled at Newark International Airport.

American Airlines said it cancelled all flights into and out of Washington's Reagan National Airport, Dulles International Airport and Baltimore/Washington International Airport until the evening.

The airline also reduced service to LaGuardia and Newark.

A spokesman for American said the airline had cancelled about 325 flights by 11 a.m. yesterday morning and said it was possible the cancellations could rise.

Floyd, one of the strongest hurricanes ever recorded in the Atlantic, is blamed for four deaths in North Carolina after striking the state before dawn Thursday morning.

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