Lufthansa plane stuck six hours on JFK tarmac
Passengers on a Lufthansa flight suffered the after-effects of a powerful blizzard paralyzing New York City this week, when their plane was forced to sit on the tarmac at JFK airport for more than six hours after landing.
The flight was one of the first from Germany after a powerful snowstorm hit the northeastern United States, news channel CNN reported late Wednesday.
But after making it across the Atlantic, the Lufthansa plane – along with several other flights from Europe – was forced to wait on the runway until there was a gate available.
As frustrating as it must have been for the Lufthansa passengers to find themselves stranded on the tarmac nearly as long as they were as in the air, travellers on a Korean Air flight from Seoul had the most horrific wait at JFK.
After flying some 15 hours from Asia, the plane was stuck on the runway for a mind-boggling nine hours.
"We did contact the airlines and have been telling them they must not leave their point of origin without being assured of a gate," Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman told CNN. "Apparently, it didn't help."
Unlucky holiday travellers have been plagued by weather delays and cancellations on both sides of the Atlantic.
Only days before the latest blizzard hit the US East Coast, airports across Europe had to contend with wintry conditions shutting down air traffic. Germany’s largest air hub in Frankfurt wasn’t spared the travel chaos, and thousands of passengers were forced to sleep in the airport for days.
The Local/mry
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The flight was one of the first from Germany after a powerful snowstorm hit the northeastern United States, news channel CNN reported late Wednesday.
But after making it across the Atlantic, the Lufthansa plane – along with several other flights from Europe – was forced to wait on the runway until there was a gate available.
As frustrating as it must have been for the Lufthansa passengers to find themselves stranded on the tarmac nearly as long as they were as in the air, travellers on a Korean Air flight from Seoul had the most horrific wait at JFK.
After flying some 15 hours from Asia, the plane was stuck on the runway for a mind-boggling nine hours.
"We did contact the airlines and have been telling them they must not leave their point of origin without being assured of a gate," Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman told CNN. "Apparently, it didn't help."
Unlucky holiday travellers have been plagued by weather delays and cancellations on both sides of the Atlantic.
Only days before the latest blizzard hit the US East Coast, airports across Europe had to contend with wintry conditions shutting down air traffic. Germany’s largest air hub in Frankfurt wasn’t spared the travel chaos, and thousands of passengers were forced to sleep in the airport for days.
The Local/mry
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