Several flights set to depart from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport on Friday afternoon and evening were grounded as part of the Federal Aviation Administration’s nationwide ground stop.
Several flights set to depart from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport pictured on on Friday evening were grounded as part of the Federal Aviation Administration nationwide groud stop.
Several flights set to depart from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport pictured on on Friday evening were grounded as part of the Federal Aviation Administration nationwide groud stop.
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Several flights set to depart from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport pictured on on Friday evening were grounded as part of the Federal Aviation Administration nationwide groud stop.
Communication problems at regional air traffic control centers were the cause, according to The Associated Press.
Lackawanna County Commissioner Chris Chermak, chairman of the bicounty board that oversees the airport in Pittston Twp., confirmed the FAA ground stop halting departing flights there and across the country.
Several flights were scheduled to depart AVP, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton airport’s FAA codename, on Friday evening. Departures listed on the airport’s website include American Airlines flights to Charlotte, Philadelphia and Chicago and a United Airlines flight to Chicago.
It’s unclear if or when those flights will be permitted to take off.
Multiple passengers were sitting and waiting at the airport for additional guidance.
One person traveling for business left and went to stay at a local hotel set up by his employer.
Justin Roberts was in the area for business and was set to fly back to Milwaukee on Friday. Colleagues contacted him and told him about the ground stop.
He wasn’t upset. He said his work was complete and he’d enjoy a night off in a hotel.
“Don’t worry about me,” he said. “I’m all good.”
Steve Hicks of Bloomsburg was on his way to Denver on Friday to attend his cousin’s funeral tomorrow afternoon.
Now he won’t be able to say a final goodbye. Shortly before he was to leave at 5:30, he got the news.
“He was my contemporary and its sad,” he said. “It shows when you depend on technology to work efficiently, sometimes you get let down.”
Paula Love of Clarks Summit arrived at the airport earlier Friday on her way to Oklahoma. She was initially told her connecting flight to Charlotte was delayed and was hopeful she could still arrive on time to see her family.
As she waited, she heard the news of the nationwide ground stop and realized she might not see her family as planned. She was waiting for a car to pick her up to take her back to Clarks Summit.
AVP officials also noted the ground stop in a social media post advising that airline operations “will be affected.”
“You can check for up to date flight status by going to the airline you are scheduled to fly,” the post said.