typhoonpilot
Well-Known Member
By Lori Aratani
The Washington Post
The weather forecast was less than ideal for the Delta Air Lines flight that left Monday afternoon bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport from Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, but no one aboard could have imagined just how bad things would get.
According to multiple news reports and tweets from the passengers, the four-hour flight turned into a 30-hour nightmare — with two flight diversions caused by bad weather. At one point, the turbulence was so bad, one passenger told NBC that she thought the plane was going to break in half.
“I’ve never seen an airsick bag used before and many were,” said Lauren Karasek, another passenger aboard the flight.
Delta apologized.
In an email Wednesday, spokesman Michael Thomas confirmed the multiple diversions.
“Delta flight 944 from Punta Cana was unable to land at JFK due to runway conditions and inclement weather … The flight diverted to Manchester, New Hampshire, where it remained overnight to comply with mandated crew rest requirements. The flight redeparted for JFK the following day as Delta flight 9929 but diverted to Boston as a result of severe weather in New York. With improving conditions, the flight arrived at JFK before 8 p.m. EST Tuesday.”
Karasek said the flight left as scheduled, bound for New York with no indication that anything was amiss. Even as the flight circled the airport, passengers aboard were unconcerned. Looking out the window, passengers could see there was heavy cloud cover and snow. Then the captain spoke.
“He said that we were low on fuel and had to land in 10 minutes or we needed to be diverted,” Karasek, 30, recalled.
So diverted they were — to Manchester, which would have been all well and good — except that the airport isn’t equipped to handle international travel so there were no Customs officials to process the 160 or so passengers. (Delta officials told PIX 11 TV that agents were brought in from Portland, Maine, 95 miles away).
There were more problems. Because of heavy snow and cold, the plane had to be de-iced. And, because the flight had taken so long, there was a risk that the crew members would “time-out,” meaning they’d reached the maximum amount of time they could fly.
The “time-out” window was missed. Karasek said passengers resigned themselves to spending the night in Manchester. Efforts to get passengers off the plane also ran into trouble. The first set of stairs ground crews rolled up to the plane didn’t fit. A second set of stairs had to be brought in.
But this would not be the end, either.
No such luck. When Karasek and her friends arrived at the terminal, there was no one from Delta to meet them, only an airport security guard who’d radioed Delta that people were waiting.
So she and her friends struck out on their own, found a hotel and settled in for the night. About 1 a.m. they received an email from Delta, apologizing for the problems and offering them 12,500 SkyMiles. They heard nothing more until they called at 8 a.m. and were told their flight would be leaving at 11 a.m.
The plane left Manchester and made two attempts to land at JFK in what Karasek was later told were 60 mph winds. People were being tossed around the plane, she said. Airsick bags were deployed. Several people requested oxygen, which was offered using portable tanks.
Karasek is keeping it all in perspective. “Yes, this sucks, but there are plenty of other travesties in the world; let’s just take a minute to remember that,” she said.
And while Karasek praised the flight crew as more than gracious given the circumstances, she’s less pleased with Delta’s customer service. Between the hotel and train tickets, she estimates she and her friends spent roughly $650. Her efforts to reach Delta via Twitter about possible reimbursement were not so successful. Wednesday afternoon, airline representatives told her she would not be eligible for reimbursement.
Thomas, the Delta spokesman, confirmed the offer of 12,500 SkyMiles, adding that those who don’t have frequent-flier accounts with the airline were offered vouchers, but he could not say for how much. He also said the airline would evaluate other situations like Karasek’s.
The key is the bolded part. Did the captain consider the possibility of getting stuck in Manchester without readily available Customs for the passengers? Why not go to a larger airport with Customs? What were their options?
This is a situation I have seen over and over again elsewhere. When a major international airport closes your first choice alternate options can rapidly evaporate as they either fill up or perhaps also get affected by the same weather event.
Do you as the captain start talking to operations fairly early in the process to ascertain what the options are and where you might get sent to? Do you consider the make up of the passengers and what their Customs requirements might be?
Discuss
The Washington Post
The weather forecast was less than ideal for the Delta Air Lines flight that left Monday afternoon bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport from Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, but no one aboard could have imagined just how bad things would get.
According to multiple news reports and tweets from the passengers, the four-hour flight turned into a 30-hour nightmare — with two flight diversions caused by bad weather. At one point, the turbulence was so bad, one passenger told NBC that she thought the plane was going to break in half.
“I’ve never seen an airsick bag used before and many were,” said Lauren Karasek, another passenger aboard the flight.
Delta apologized.
In an email Wednesday, spokesman Michael Thomas confirmed the multiple diversions.
“Delta flight 944 from Punta Cana was unable to land at JFK due to runway conditions and inclement weather … The flight diverted to Manchester, New Hampshire, where it remained overnight to comply with mandated crew rest requirements. The flight redeparted for JFK the following day as Delta flight 9929 but diverted to Boston as a result of severe weather in New York. With improving conditions, the flight arrived at JFK before 8 p.m. EST Tuesday.”
Karasek said the flight left as scheduled, bound for New York with no indication that anything was amiss. Even as the flight circled the airport, passengers aboard were unconcerned. Looking out the window, passengers could see there was heavy cloud cover and snow. Then the captain spoke.
“He said that we were low on fuel and had to land in 10 minutes or we needed to be diverted,” Karasek, 30, recalled.
So diverted they were — to Manchester, which would have been all well and good — except that the airport isn’t equipped to handle international travel so there were no Customs officials to process the 160 or so passengers. (Delta officials told PIX 11 TV that agents were brought in from Portland, Maine, 95 miles away).
There were more problems. Because of heavy snow and cold, the plane had to be de-iced. And, because the flight had taken so long, there was a risk that the crew members would “time-out,” meaning they’d reached the maximum amount of time they could fly.
The “time-out” window was missed. Karasek said passengers resigned themselves to spending the night in Manchester. Efforts to get passengers off the plane also ran into trouble. The first set of stairs ground crews rolled up to the plane didn’t fit. A second set of stairs had to be brought in.
But this would not be the end, either.
No such luck. When Karasek and her friends arrived at the terminal, there was no one from Delta to meet them, only an airport security guard who’d radioed Delta that people were waiting.
So she and her friends struck out on their own, found a hotel and settled in for the night. About 1 a.m. they received an email from Delta, apologizing for the problems and offering them 12,500 SkyMiles. They heard nothing more until they called at 8 a.m. and were told their flight would be leaving at 11 a.m.
The plane left Manchester and made two attempts to land at JFK in what Karasek was later told were 60 mph winds. People were being tossed around the plane, she said. Airsick bags were deployed. Several people requested oxygen, which was offered using portable tanks.
Karasek is keeping it all in perspective. “Yes, this sucks, but there are plenty of other travesties in the world; let’s just take a minute to remember that,” she said.
And while Karasek praised the flight crew as more than gracious given the circumstances, she’s less pleased with Delta’s customer service. Between the hotel and train tickets, she estimates she and her friends spent roughly $650. Her efforts to reach Delta via Twitter about possible reimbursement were not so successful. Wednesday afternoon, airline representatives told her she would not be eligible for reimbursement.
Thomas, the Delta spokesman, confirmed the offer of 12,500 SkyMiles, adding that those who don’t have frequent-flier accounts with the airline were offered vouchers, but he could not say for how much. He also said the airline would evaluate other situations like Karasek’s.
The key is the bolded part. Did the captain consider the possibility of getting stuck in Manchester without readily available Customs for the passengers? Why not go to a larger airport with Customs? What were their options?
This is a situation I have seen over and over again elsewhere. When a major international airport closes your first choice alternate options can rapidly evaporate as they either fill up or perhaps also get affected by the same weather event.
Do you as the captain start talking to operations fairly early in the process to ascertain what the options are and where you might get sent to? Do you consider the make up of the passengers and what their Customs requirements might be?
Discuss
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