Alaska-bound airline passengers pile up in Seattle

March 29, 2009

Long lines greeted Alaska-bound air travelers at SeaTac International Airport Sunday. (KING-TV)

by Deborah Feldman
KING-TV
Sunday, March 29, 2009

SEATTLE -- Passengers checking in at SeaTac's Alaska Airlines terminal were greeted by flyers warning that Mount Redoubt -- and the airport closure it prompted -- is the cause behind countless cancellations.

"Just got back from a seven-month deployment on Friday," said Navy man Charles Shaw, who had hoped to be reunited with his wife and two daughters by now.

"They were pretty disappointed, as you'd probably imagine," he said.

Shaw joined people from dozens of other canceled flights at a specially created counter to rebook the ever-growing backlog of passengers.

Many are being told Wednesday is now the earliest the airline can even book new tickets to Anchorage.

"At this point I'm just looking for anything that gets me into the state and try to drive back to Anchorage," Shaw said.

Forrest Brumfield has been trying to get to Alaska since Friday, and is afraid the oil field job he just landed will disappear.

"I'm worried," he said. "The way the economy is it's tough to find a job and I was really excited about getting this. So, this is a really good-paying job and now I might get put back on a waiting list."

For others without pressing matters to attend to, the canceled flights just mean a longer trip away from home.

"Yeah, it may turn into a three-week vacation," Tom Robson said with a laugh. He and his wife Terri hadn't planned to end their Caribbean cruise with a visit to Seattle, but say after they hit Wal-Mart for clothes, they're heading downtown for some fun.

"You can hang out here on standby lists and go from gate to gate, but we figured the lesser evil is just go ahead and enjoy a few days in Seattle and go home on Wednesday morning," Tom Robson said.

Alaska Airlines says it has canceled about 230 flights in the last week thanks to Mount Redoubt's eruptions.

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