Pilots Were Stuck In Traffic Caused By Super Bowl Victory Parade

United Airlines Flight 263 was scheduled to depart New Orleans for Los Angeles at 2118 Tuesday night, but after passengers spent  three hours on the plane at the gate ... the flight was cancelled.

The pilots were reportedly stuck in traffic caused by a victory parade for the New Orleans Saints, who (in case you hadn't heard) won the Super Bowl Sunday night.

Television station WWL in New Orleans reports that passengers were allowed to move around in the plane, and even get off to go back into the gate area, but the flight was not rescheduled until Wednesday afternoon. Passenger Dwight Webster told the station "So all in all, it will be 24 hours before I get home."

United spokesperson Megan McCarthy said "The van that was supposed to pick up the pilots of the plane was accidentally misdirected and then caught up in the huge amount of traffic due to the Super Bowl celebration in New Orleans. The pilots eventually had to make their own way to the airport, which took a very long time and delayed them severely.”

McCarthy said that by the time the pilots arrived at the airport, they were past their duty time and no longer able to fly. Some passengers said the pilots appeared to be under the influence of alcohol, but no breathalyzer test was administered. McCarthy said the accusations of the pilots being drunk were simply "not true."

The passengers were eventually allowed to reclaim their luggage, but a promised shuttle to a nearby motel for which they were given overnight vouchers never arrived. The passengers eventually had to pay for their own cabs to get to the motel. Said Webster "I'm a little annoyed right now."

FMI: www.united.com