A Norse Atlantic Airways flight from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to Oslo, which had been scheduled for Friday night, finally departed on Monday night, according to FlightAware.
There had been numerous delays that had angered passengers, who had to return to the airport each day and wait for hours before being told their flight was again canceled.
It all started when the plane was taxiing the runway for departure to Oslo at about 10:30 p.m. Friday. The aircraft’s wing tip light broke when it “came into contact with a piece of construction equipment on the airfield,” airport spokeswoman Arlene Satchell said. She said there were no injuries.
The airport has not responded to questions from the Sun Sentinel about what kind of construction equipment was on the airfield and why it was in that location. The incident is under investigation, Satchell said.
After inspecting the damage, Norse decided to put off departure and offered hotel accommodations to passengers who needed them, Satchell said.
The airline had thought repairs would be done by Saturday, but the “process is taking longer than expected,” Satchell said.
A Norse spokesman said the plane incurred “minor damage” and said the safety of passengers and crew was never at stake.
“We are doing everything possible to minimize any further delay and ensure that passengers can continue to Oslo as soon as possible,” said Philip Allport, Norse’s vice president for communications.
Passengers Michael Elkins, 35, and Jaclyn Smith, 33 of Naples, who had planned to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary in Norway, said they had been to the airport Friday, Saturday and Sunday and had to wait hours each day only to be told there would be no flight.
“First there’s frustration and disbelief,” Elkins said. “You wouldn’t expect an airline that could operate a flight like this not to have a system in place for situations like this.”
