Incident in DSM

[SSDD]

Just caught a bit on tv about two aircraft that slid off the runway in DSM, any more details?

 

[FurloughedAgain]

[FONT=arial, helvetica][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Des Moines airport shut; crews work to free airplane that skidded off runway[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]
REGISTER STAFF REPORT [/FONT] [/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica]A United regional jet slid off the runway at Des Moines International Airport this morning, closing the airport for between four and six hours as workers try to remove the stuck jet.

Nobody was hurt.

United flight 7244 to Chicago was taxiing toward one of the airport's two runways at 7:40 a.m. today when the pilot made a turn onto the runway. The plane's right wheel slid on some ice and then sunk into the adjacent grass, according to Craig Smith, the airport's aviation director.[/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica]Shuttle buses were immediately sent to the runway to retrieve the 44 passengers on the Canadair regional jet, Smith said.

The runway -- runway 13-31, which runs from the northwest to the southeast
-- will be closed as the Iowa Air National Guard attempts to remove the plane from the runway.

"We're going to get it off there as fast as we can and get the runway reopened," he said.

The runway itself was OK, Smith said, but the icy edges caused the plane to slide.

The airport's other runway was closed today due to high winds.

Smith said the airport does not yet know what airlines will do with today's flights. For now, all are delayed at least 4 to 6 hours, though airlines will determine whether they are canceled.

"It's a true inconvenience," Smith said. "We're got a terminal full of people who probably aren't very happy."

He suggests people who are flying today should constantly be checking with their airlines for updates on their flights.[/FONT]

 

[WalterSobchak]

United Express 7244 is a Mesa operated flight.

Cancellation coded to...get this...weather. Now that's creative!

 

[Guitar Guy]

[FONT=arial, helvetica]
The runway -- runway 13-31, which runs from the northwest to the southeast
-- will be closed as the Iowa Air National Guard attempts to remove the plane from the runway.
[/FONT]

You know, it's pretty amazing to read that the non-aviation media actually got that right.

Walter - thanks for that tidbit. But I guess you have to give Mesa credit. If it weren't for "weather", there wouldn't have been any ice to slide on. Ergo, it's the weather's fault.

 

[Hypoxik]

Also the MSP Pinnacle Flight

 

[Bruno82]

It was a mess. I ended up timing out there.