With Hurricane Sandy forcing the cancellation of thousands of flights to and from the Northeast Monday and Tuesday, the Savannah International Airport is advising all passengers to check their flight status with their airline before leaving for the airport.

“Even if you aren’t headed into the storm, your flight could be affected,” airport spokeswoman Lori Lynah said. “We’re advising travelers to contact airlines through their websites for rebooking, as 800-number hold times are currently as long as two hours.”

Airlines have cancelled more than 12,000 flights from Boston to Washington D.C. for Monday and Tuesday, with disruptions causing a ripple effect that has spread across the country and overseas, stranding passengers from California to Hong Kong to Europe.

The cancellations already have topped those from Hurricane Irene last year and are on par with those from the snowstorm that pounded the East Coast in early 2011.

Trade group Airports Council International said that, even if storm damage is relatively minor, it could be a week before operations are back to normal at major East Coast airports.

Wall Street analysts expect carriers like Jet Blue, Delta and United to suffer a short-term hit to earnings as they spend money to shuffle crews and planes away from – and then back to – the Northeast.

Atlanta-based Delta had already cancelled more than 2,000 flights on Monday.