Inside Report (3)

The real test of how hard the nation's hotels and motels have been hit by the air traffic controllers strike is yet to come. Business trips, conventions, and Sunbelt travel generally pick up strongly between mid-September and mid-November. The American Hotel and Motel Association says lodging cancellations, which in the early days of the strike hit the 10 percent mark, have eased off to normal for now. A major CPA firm handling hotel and motel accounts similarly brands the current impact as "mild."

But travel agents still report ample confusion among passengers as flights are canceled or delayed. Some travelers are just throwing in the towel and staying home, they say.m