Alaska Airlines’ ground stop effects one Missoula flight

Martin Kidston

(Missoula Current) The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday grounded all planes operated by Alaska Airlines, a move that delayed at least one flight in Missoula.

The FAA issued the ground stop at 7:30 a.m. Pacific Time, effectively halting all Alaska Airline's departures.

“We were not affected by any delays today,” Missoula Montana Airport Director Brian Ellestad said on Thursday. “But yesterday one of our Alaska flights was affected by about 2 ½ hours due to the self-imposed ground stop.”

A spokesperson for Alaska Airlines said the carrier experienced an issue while performing an update to a system that calculates the weight and balance of individual aircraft.

The carrier said it requested the ground stop for all of its flights.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we requested a ground stop for all Alaska and Horizon flights, which was instituted at approximately 7:30 a.m.,” the company said. “The issue was mitigated and the ground stop for Alaska and Horizon flights expired at 8:30 a.m.”