Weather, equipment problem delay Logan flights
By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff
Arrivals at Logan Airport are being delayed even longer as bad weather continues to dominate Boston. Flights are now three hours behind schedule because of the low cloud cover and an equipment failure that has shut down the runway most heavily used during bad weather, the FAA said today.
Departures are also being slowed, but by far shorter periods of time, and the FAA is urging travelers to check with their airlines about revised schedules.
Peters said the instrument-landing system at Runway 4R failed Tuesday for reasons that are still under investigation. Without the system, the FAA has to shift landings to runways 33L and 15. Those runways can handle instrument landings, but officials prefer to use 4R in bad weather conditions.
To assure safe flights, the FAA has ordered airports across the country to hold Boston-bound flights on the ground until a landing slot opens at Logan. At 3 p.m., the airport has cut the number of landings to 26 an hour, down from the normal rate of more than 60, Peters said.
Peters said that if weather worsens, the FAA may reduce the number of arrivals and may also stop allowing planes to land at Logan entirely.
If we go below the [safety] minimums, we cannot allow aircraft to land, Peters said. In effect, today we are limited to one runway for landings and one runway for takeoffs.
He said the FAA is closely watching weather conditions.
It is not known how long it will take to repair the instrument-landing system and bring 4R back into service, Peters said.
On the Beat

Columnist
Adrian Walker says Robert Coards legacy as an anti-poverty activist will live on. Read more
|
|

Recent stories from the MetroDesk


Features

Editor's Choice

A day in the life of a pandemic

Losing ground
- Iraq latest crucible for Harvard mediation
- Transportation payroll soared under Patrick
- Stimulus money for bridge near Gillette
- Budget cuts hit homeless shelters hard

From Today's Globe
- Capuano shifts on health overhaul
- Mass. keeps an eye on US bill’s funding ban
- Back home in Quincy, Green Beret’s new mission is finding a civilian job
- Cahill says he rebuffed calls to be Baker’s running mate
- Police cleared in Celtics fan death

MORE BLOGS

LOCAL BLOGS
Universal Hub
The Chinatown Blog
CommonWealth Magazine
Red Mass Group
Blue Mass Group
Boston 1775
The Berkeley Beacon
The Daily Collegian
The Daily Free Press
The Harvard Crimson
The Heights
The Huntington News
The Suffolk Voice
The Tech
The Tufts Daily







