Eclipse flights flood into small airports | Wilnesh News

Monday’s solar eclipse gave some of the country’s smaller airports their moment in the sun.

The Federal Aviation Administration reported that a flight from Burlington, Vermont, to an airport in southern Illinois made a brief layover Monday morning ahead of the total solar eclipse.

Such disruptions are usually caused by bad weather and traffic congestion in big city hubs, but heavy demand for premium views of the phenomenon led to congestion at some smaller airports on Monday.The best views of the eclipse in the U.S. reportedly run from Texas through Illinois, Kentucky and Ohio to northwestern New York and Maine NASA.

The FAA’s traffic adjustments give airports time to catch up and avoid congestion of aircraft parking on the ground.

“We had to close runways to park aircraft,” Alyssa Connell, director of operations at Southern Illinois Airport in Murphysboro, Illinois, told CNBC. The airport, which has three runways, accepted reservations for eclipse flights , the maximum limit of 230 small propeller aircraft and about 45 large jets and large turboprop aircraft was reached on Friday. “This is by far the most aircraft we’ve ever seen.”

Dave Kaman, deputy director of aviation operations at Vermont’s Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport, said it plans to receive 100 to 130 general aviation aircraft on Monday. It also expects some scheduled commercial passenger aircraft traffic.

“This is the most we’ve seen all day,” Kaman said. “It’s going to be busy out there,” he said.

The eclipse was described as a major event during the FAA’s morning planning call from its command center in Warrenton, Virginia, according to an FAA spokesman. Other common obstacles include presidential travel, inclement weather or major sports and entertainment events.

The FAA has previously warn pilots Regarding possible disruptions and traffic congestion at many airports in or near the path of the eclipse.

Delta Airlines Special eclipse flights are on sale that allow passengers to view the eclipse from the sky, with one flying from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to Detroit and another from Austin, Texas, to Detroit. Other airlines have arranged flights along the “path of totality” to view the eclipse. United Airlines Bookings to San Antonio more than doubled during the eclipse compared to the same time last year, with bookings also surging in Cleveland and Little Rock, Ark., the company said.

The eclipse is expected to be a boon for hotels, home rentals and other industries as tourists flock to the area.