Sky Harbor, The Arizona State Sun Devils are still on the ground in Arizona on Friday, their flight to Orlando not departed, and the team is not supposed to depart tonight at 9 p.m., ahead of Saturday’s game at UCF.
First reported by Chris Karpman.
The Sun Devils are not the only ones stuck. The stop hits travelers trying to get to the football games on Saturday. ASU plays at UCF on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. MST on ESPN2, and Arizona hosts No. 2 Utah on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. MST on FOX — with the teams and the fans trying to get there on flights that are not moving.
For now, whether the Sun Devils get out tonight depends on when the FAA lifts the stop — and with no estimate given, Saturday’s schedule is the thing to watch.
The ground stop came Friday afternoon, after a communications failure hit air traffic control centers across the country. The FAA advisory lists the stop as effective from 3:54 p.m. ET (1:54 p.m. in Arizona). Planes already in the air can land, but nothing on the ground can take off.
In a statement, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said: “The FAA issued a nationwide ground stop for all U.S. airports following a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers. FAA technicians are investigating the issue.” The FAA said the stop was “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety.”
Nationwide, nearly 7,000 flights have been delayed or canceled. Departures are grounded until further notice, though the advisory lists an end time of 11:30 p.m. ET, with no estimate for when normal operations return. It is the second nationwide ground stop of all departures since Sept. 11, 2001.
In Arizona, at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, 351 flights were delayed and 7 canceled as of 2:40 p.m. Friday, with 6 more delayed at Mesa Gateway Airport.
© Old Town News Scottsdale— oldtownnews.us
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