D/FW AIRPORT -- American Airlines Inc. canceled more than 1,000 flights Wednesday, nearly half of its entire schedule, as it hurried to complete its reinspections on its fleet of MD-80 jets.

A handful of flights in and out of New Orleans were canceled. Check flymsy.com to find out the status of your flight.

The massive cancellations left tens of thousands of its customers worried about how they were going to complete their trips and proved a further embarrassment to the world’s largest airline.

American Airlines officials said at a press conference at its headquarters Wednesday afternoon that they plan to pay for food, lodging, and ground transportation for customers who were delayed overnight due to the cancellations. Those passengers would also receive vouchers for future travel on American.

Dan Garton, American’s chief marketing officer, declined to put a dollar figure to the costs the massive schedule disruption had caused, saying only that is would be “significant.”

As of early Wednesday afternoon, 52 of American’s MD-80s had been inspected, modified and signed-off on by the Federal Aviation Administration inspectors.

Mr. Garton said that the FAA is scrutinizing airline compliance with airworthiness directives more closely than in the past, and once it was made clear that American was not in compliance, it had no choice but to ground the airplanes until it corrected the problems.

He said when the planes were grounded two weeks ago, airlines officials believed there was a certain amount of latitude in how the work could be implemented, but it was made clear recently that that would not be the case.

Mr. Garton declined to criticize the FAA or call its demands “nit-picky.”

The Fort Worth-based carrier had canceled about 460 flights that were to depart Tuesday on MD-80s, giving American nearly 1,500 cancellations in two days.

American spokesman Tim Wagner said Wednesday that he wasn’t sure how long it would take for passengers to be re-accommodated as the airline worked to get its MD-80 fleet back into service.

On Tuesday, some D/FW passengers were taken by bus to San Antonio and Austin, though Mr. Wagner wasn’t certain if similar efforts were being made on Wednesday.

He estimated that Wednesday's cancellations would disrupt travel plans for about 100,000 passengers.

Army Sgt. 1st Class James Martin, 36, who had been in Iraq and traveling for 22 hours, was heading to Colorado Springs, Colo., to spend his 18-day leave with his wife and two kids when he learned his flight from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport had been canceled Wednesday.

“I was supposed to be home today picking up my kids from school as a surprise,” he said. Instead, he will spend one day of leave at a Motel 6 in the Dallas area.

Travelers who have flights scheduled on American Airlines between Wednesday and Friday may change their itineraries without penalty, as long as the rescheduled travel begins by April 17, Mr. Wagner said. Passengers should call American’s reservation line at 1-800-433-7300.

American had pulled its MD-80s out of service over two days in late March to inspect the wiring harness to an auxiliary hydraulic pump in a wheel well, canceling nearly 500 flights then.

But a Federal Aviation Administration audit of the work Monday showed that the work did not appear to conform to the engineering change order that details how modifications were to be done.

For travelers at stuck at D/FW Airport on Tuesday, the cancellations meant hours long waits in line, scrambling for a hotel room and making do with whatever they had in carry-on.

Due to the sheer volume of flights suddenly canceled, American Airlines advised passengers that checked bags would not be redistributed but would be sent to passenger's destination.

Airline and airport officials did what they could to accommodate stranded passengers.

D/FW Airport employees purchased baby formula and diapers along with other necessities to distribute to stranded passengers. On Tuesday night, officials at the airport made announcements over the airport's pubic address system advising passengers to pick up a courtesy phone if they needed items delivered to them in the terminal.

An airport spokesman said Wednesday that a precise count of passengers who spent the night in the terminals was not available but that it was least 1,000.

D/FW asked concessionaires to stay open throughout the night so passengers could purchase food and beverages.

For stranded travelers, the closest large hotel was mostly unavailable Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Hyatt Regency DFW was already hosting four large groups and was nearly full before Tuesday’s cancellations were announced. A spokeswoman for the hotel said Wednesday morning that the hotel was sold out last night and doesn’t expect to have any rooms available until Thursday.

For Sarah and Tim Nutter, who were connecting in North Texas with their infant daughter and 2-year-old son, the delays meant tracking down infant formula and diapers. The family was rebooked on an early afternoon flight Wednesday, but mentally prepared for another delay.

Some stranded American Airlines passengers took matters into their own hands in order to get home.

When Albuquerque businessman Tom Riccobene found an automated message from American saying the morning flight home he was reschedule on was also cancelled, he decided to try another carrier.

“I looked out my hotel window and saw Southwest planes flying and decided I’d give that a try,” Mr. Riccobene said. “I couldn’t afford to be delayed again.”

He booked himself a 8:55 a.m. flight from Dallas Love Field and was home before 10 a.m. He wasn’t sure when he’d see his checked bags, which were still at D/FW airport.

He also wasn’t sure if American would reimburse him for the $180 ticket on Southwest, but planned to file a claim.

“These things happen,” Mr. Riccobene said. “You’ve just got to make the best of it and keep going.”