ARLINGTON, Va. (DC News Now) — More than 280 flights were delayed Friday at Reagan National Airport (DCA) due to the ongoing plane crash investigation.
Some travelers were frustrated because the reason for the delays was not communicated to the passengers on all of the flights. The biggest impact was on arriving planes.
More than a week after the deadly mid-air collision near the airport, travelers are still on edge.
“I was very nervous. I prayed the whole way here,” Jackie Burke said.
Burke flew in from Buffalo, New York.
“It was delayed about 50 minutes, plus, we sat on the runway, probably for 20 minutes,” Burke said.
According to Flight Aware, there were 288 delays as of 10 p.m. on Friday.
“Everybody took it well. People understand it was a real tragedy that occurred. Lives were lost, and there’s a need for an investigation,” Karl Racine said.
The FAA said it’s slowing traffic into and out of the airport due to temporary runway closures for recovery efforts.
“We were going down the runway and they pulled us to the side and said that we had to wait about 10, 15 minutes until D.C. was a little less traffic,” said Judy Georgevich, who flew in from Charlotte, North Carolina.
The FAA said the delay for arriving flights is averaging 31 minutes.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has rescheduled its low-altitude flight over the Potomac to scan for additional wreckage. It will happen early Saturday morning between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m.
Anyone who sees a green laser on the water’s surface is advised not to look directly at it but it is safe for the eyes.
As for the winter weather coming Saturday, the airport said it’s not expecting major impacts on operations but crews are standing by to treat the runway as necessary.
