BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Flights to and from Burlington and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport were canceled Thursday, a day after the deadly mid-air collision of an American Airlines commuter jet and military helicopter. The airline tracking website FlightAware indicated that the same aircraft involved in the crash was scheduled to fly to Burlington later Wednesday night.
Travelers we spoke to at the Burlington airport who were impacted by the shutdown were busy trying to rebook flights.
“It’s crazy what happened,” said Matthew Bond of Burlington, one of the travelers headed to Washington. He says he was told by American Airlines his flight will be pushed to at least Friday.
“They can’t do anything about it. It’s one of those things that happens — is a tragedy you have to be understanding of that.”
Burlington resident Grace Marek, who was also flying American, says it’s a sad day but that she feels safe to fly. “I feel totally safe. We have an amazing flight safety record and I’m of course extremely sad of the loss of life but I feel safe flying,” she said.
“I’m from Washington D.C. — that’s very tragic — but definitely feel safe flying,” said Boubacar Idrissa.
The Burlington Airport, although not as large as Reagan National, is also busy with commercial and military jets and helicopters every day. There is still no information on the cause of the crash although a report by the Federal Aviation Administration says staffing in the air traffic control tower was “not normal” at the time.
Burlington airport officials on Thursday said they were unable to confirm that the American jet’s next scheduled stop was Burlington and that airlines change flights — and equipment — constantly. American Airlines did not respond to immediate requests for comment.