An Air solution has begun, planes began brining supplies yesterday, the day before the air force was readying the runway to accept planes. That means that ummm, Tuesday the day the levees broke, an Air Solution had begun.
I guess we should use your timeline: Levee breaks, planes land. Try to be more realistic in your expectations, it's just as hard to provide help from the air.
Around the world, for decades, the US has brought food, water, and other supplies in by parachute when runways are not available or are not safe.
The solution in NO should have been to parachute the necessities in at the earliest possible moment that it became clear that all other alternatives would allow the situation to degrade drastically through added delay.