An airplane flies by during a partial solar eclipse over Queens, New York, USA, April 8, 2024.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
Monday’s solar eclipse is giving some of the nation’s smallest airports their moment in the sun.
The Federal Aviation Administration reported that flights arriving at airports from Burlington, Vermont, to southern Illinois were briefly disrupted Monday morning ahead of the total eclipse.
Such disruptions are usually caused by bad weather and heavy traffic at hubs in major cities, but high demand for prime views of the phenomenon blocked some smaller airports on Monday. The best views of the solar eclipse in the US stretch from Texas through Illinois, Kentucky and Ohio to northwestern New York and Maine, according to NASA.
Passengers and crew take a photo wearing eclipse glasses on Southwest Flight 1252 from Dallas, Texas to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that passed through the path of totality on April 8, 2024 in Dallas, Texas.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
The FAA’s traffic adjustments give airports time to catch up and avoid gridlock in parking planes on the ground.
“We had to close the runway to park planes,” Alyssa Connell, chief of operations at Southern Illinois Airport in Murphysboro, Illinois, told CNBC. The airport, which has three runways, was booked for eclipse flights and on Friday reached its maximum limit of 230 small rotorcraft and about 45 larger jets and larger turboprops. “This is by far the most aircraft we’ve ever seen.”
The Statue of Liberty is seen during a partial solar eclipse, where the moon partially blocks the sun, on Liberty Island in New York, US, April 8, 2024.
David Dee Delgado | Reuters
Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport in Vermont is scheduled to receive between 100 and 130 general aviation planes on Monday, said Dave Carman, deputy director of aviation operations. It also anticipates some scheduled launch of commercial passenger jets.
“It’s the most we’ve seen in one day,” Carman said. “It’s going to be tumultuous going out,” he said.
A Southwest flight attendant wears solar eclipse glasses while doing a safety demonstration on Southwest Flight 1252 from Dallas, Texas to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that passed through the path of totality on April 8, 2024 in Dallas, Texas.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
The eclipse was highlighted as a major event on the FAA’s morning scheduling call at its command center in Warrenton, Virginia, according to an agency spokeswoman. Other common obstacles include presidential travel, bad weather, or major sporting and entertainment events.
The FAA previously had warned pilots about possible disruptions and heavy traffic at a number of airports on or near the path of the eclipse.
Delta Air Lines sold special eclipse flights during which passengers could view it from the sky, one from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to Detroit and another from Austin, Texas to Detroit.
A passenger wears solar eclipse glasses as she looks out from a special Delta Airlines eclipse flight over the US sky, April 8, 2024.
Leonardo Benassatto | Reuters
Other airlines have requested flights that could offer views of the eclipse along the “path of totality.” united airlines he said bookings in San Antonio more than doubled around the eclipse compared to the same dates last year and increased in Cleveland and Little Rock, Arkansas.
The eclipse is expected to be a boon for hotels, home rentals and other businesses as tourists flock.