Planes Skid Off Icy Pavement At JFK, O'Hare

The blast of arctic weather and precipitation that will grip much of the country for the next couple of days has already caused problems at two airports: Chicago's O'Hare and New York's JFK.

At Chicago, the Daily Journal relays a report from the Chicago Sun-Times which says a Spirit Airlines flight heading to Las Vegas Saturday slid off a taxiway while the airplane was preparing for departure. The paper said that all of the passengers were placed on buses and returned to the terminal. There were no reported injuries.

In New York, a Delta flight from Toronto slid off a taxiway and wound up in a snow bank after landing Sunday morning. The incident caused the airport to be temporarily closed. A Delta spokesperson told the New York Daily News that "The aircraft slipped off a taxiway and onto a grassy area while taxiing to the terminal. The aircraft was towed to the gate and passengers were deplaned at the terminal."

No one was reported to be injured in the New York accident.

Passengers on the New York plane said it slid off the runway rather than the taxiway, though some said they did not know they were off the pavement until the passengers were notified by the pilot.

Airport officials say that some eight flights were diverted to Connecticut due to icy runways following the incident. The airport reportedly fully re-opened about 10:15 EST.

(Winter storm Hercules pictured in NOAA satellite photo)

FMI: www.ntsb.gov