As snow and cold weather descended on Whatcom County snarling road travel, people catching flights out of Bellingham International Airport were also subject to delays.
However, it’s not on BLI to deice planes. Rather, the responsibility lies with the airline to deice the aircraft. BLI is in charge of keeping the tarmac and runways clear.
“Airlines are responsible for deicing planes while we maintain the grounds that airplanes and other craft drive on,” said Michael Shepard, a Port of Bellingham commissioner, on Tuesday, Feb. 4. “If you’re waiting for your airplane to be deiced and it’s not going fast enough, it’s not because our staff is not moving quickly. We’ve already done our work to keep the runway open.”
Mike Hogan, the public affairs administrator for the port, which operates the airport, said there was a mechanical malfunction with an airline deicing truck that led crews to switch to another rig on Monday, Feb. 3. Hogan did not specify which airline the truck belonged to.
On top of the mechanical malfunction, many airplanes required multiple rounds of deicing, leading to delays as deicing rigs had to be refilled, Hogan said. Airlines also have to supply deicing materials for their planes.
Hogan said the biggest issue Monday was the weather.
“BLI airport staff worked around the clock to keep the runway open, but each individual airline has their own safety protocols during weather events which can cause delays,” he said.
A spokesperson for Allegiant said the freezing temperatures recently have caused some weather delays, describing it as a challenge for any airline operation.
Alaska Airlines did not respond to a request for comment.
At Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, more than 280 flights were delayed and 100 were canceled on Monday.
In posts to Facebook, BLI reminded travelers to check with their airlines to see if flights were canceled. It also responded to travelers who were confused about why flights were delayed.
“Think of it like a road trip, while we plow and maintain the highway, the driver takes care of the windshield!” BLI wrote on Facebook when explaining the deicing operations.
Last year, BLI completed construction of a $5.2 million snow removal equipment hanger. It also was able to invest in a $646,000 liquid deice truck for runways and taxiways that can hold 2,000 gallons of deicing material and has a 50-foot spreading boom.
The airport keeps up to 5,000 gallons of liquid deicer in reserve at all times, Hogan said. This week alone, BLI received two shipments of deicer to keep up with the need.
Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.
