A US Airways flight was delayed for nearly three hours-because of bees. A swarm of bees was surrounding the equipment that pushes planes from the gate, forcing an Indianapolis-bound US Airways jet to be grounded at Charlotte Douglas International Airport.
Passengers on Flight 2690 had been stuck at the gate onboard the flight for more than two hours as temperatures rose by 3:45 p.m.
"We're working on getting a beekeeper out there," said spokesman Davien Anderson according to the Charlotte Observer. He said the bees were attached to the push-bag tug, a device that pushes the planes aware from the gate. Only Flight 2690 was impacted.
The flight should have taken off at 1:15 p.m., but it was at first delayed for 30 minutes due to a maintenance issue. The plane doors eventually closed, but the crew announced to the passengers that it couldn't take off because bees were attacking the front of the plane. They later clarified that it was the tug that was affected.
The flight was supposed to depart at 1:15 p.m. but had been delayed 30 minutes because of a maintenance issue, said Observer NASCAR writer Jim Utter, who was aboard.
Once the doors closed, he said, the plane's crew announced that it couldn't take off because bees were attacking the front of the plane. The crew later clarified that the bees were inside the tug.
"We haven't seen a single bee," Observer NASCAR writer Jim Utter said as he was inside the aircraft.
After 3 p.m., the crew announced that the airline would try to reconnect the plane to the terminal and asked if anyone was allergic to bees. However the passengers weren't allowed off the plane as the airline didn't want to waste time reboarding them if the beekeeper was able to catch the bees.
"Now waiting on another tug to push us back. Pilot wants to know if anyone rather get off than take off. Resounding NO!, Utter tweeted at 3:50 p.m.
The plane was finally bee free and was able to take off by 4:06 p.m.
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