TAMPA, Fla. — One year ago, weather cancellations and a system meltdown left many Southwest Airlines passengers stranded.
And in the middle of that chaos, we met New Port Richey dad, Charles "Sonny" Ferraiuolo, who had a very important date out west.
"My daughter's getting married [on] New Year's Eve. So, the only way I'm going to be guaranteed to make it there? Gonna go get my car, get my bags, and I'm going to drive to Phoenix," he said.
But did he ever make it?
Well, a year later, we're checking in with Sonny.
"I drove to Phoenix, got there about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday night, so I had 24 hours to spare," he said, "Well, to me, it was like mission accomplished. Because I really like this guy. I can't say enough about Tony. He's like the perfect match for her."
And for Gina Mancuso's now-husband, Anthony "Tony" Mancuso, the feeling is mutual.
"My father passed away in 2000, but in a lot of ways, Sonny reminds me of my father," he said, "It's real easy to have a bond with him because there's things that come out of his mouth that I know my dad would have said."
After two canceled flights, a six-hour wait for bags and a 43-hour drive, Sonny not only arrived in time for the wedding but also the rehearsal dinner, much to the relief of his daughter.
"She had asked me, she was like, 'If I wasn't getting married, would you still be coming?' and I said, 'No.' Because the gods were telling me, 'Don't go.' But you're getting married. I had to be here," said Sonny.
"[I] kept saying, if something happens to him, I will never forgive myself," said Gina, "So many things could go wrong: you could get a flat tire, your car could break down, something crazy could happen. I was more stressed out that he would get her okay and in one piece, on top of being stressed out from my wedding."
On top of that, Gina added that several other guests and members of the wedding party were held up in other parts of the country.
"And of course, he's not the only person we were concerned about not coming," she said, "So we weren't sure who was going to make it and who's not. And it's like, 'Okay, if we don't have our whole wedding party here, we're just going to have to accommodate.' I mean, what can you do? You can't change cancellations. You can't change the weather. But I really wanted my dad to be here."
And despite the intense lead-up to her big day, Gina told ABC Action News that celebrating with her dad and her loved ones made up for it all.
"It was worth all the stress, that's for sure!" Gina laughed.
Looking back a year later, Sonny is still impressed with how Southwest Airlines and its employees handled things while under pressure.
On top of that, the company also shelled out $500 worth of plane ticket vouchers, 25,000 reward points, and a $1400 check for gas, hotels, and other expenses to make up for the confusion.
"Southwest, I'm very happy with them. I still fly them. I just got back with them on a couple [of] flights," said Sonny.
