First Pilot For The Morning Flight Did Not Arrive At The Airport

Passengers on a Delta flight set to depart from JFK Airport Friday were understandably frustrated when one pilot failed to show up for his 8:15 am flight, and a second pilot who happened to show up at the ticket counter and offered to take the flight, timed out under new federal crew rest regulations while he was taxiing to the runway.

But he passengers' travails were not over. Television Station KARE reports that after the flight was cancelled nearly 12 hours after it was scheduled to depart, Delta put them up in a hotel with the promise of a 6:30 am flight the next day. But when they dutifully showed up for the early morning flight, again, there was no pilot. The gate agent said the pilot was late arriving to the airport, and the flight would be delayed.

The flight finally got away from JFK at about 8:15, almost exactly 24 hours after it was supposed to have departed. A Delta spokesperson would not confirm all of the details, but did acknowledge that there were several problems, part of which he blamed on bad weather.

The $100 Delta Choice compensation and an apology were not enough for some passengers, one of which was on leave from the military and missed her brother's wedding because of the flight delays.

FMI: http://www.delta.com/content/www/en_US/support/corporate.html