By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Oct 30 (Reuters) – A White House flyover by the US presidential airplane as part of a children’s Halloween party on Thursday evening delayed dozens of flights and raised concerns among some in the nation’s capital.
The flyover forced a temporary halt to traffic at one of the capital’s main airports and drew concerns from city lawmakers that residents, officials and the airport received only 15 minutes’ notice.
The plane — which is designated Air Force One when President Donald Trump is on board — made two lower-than-normal passes around the White House on Thursday evening, which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to temporarily halt traffic at nearby Reagan Washington National Airport.
Trump was hosting a Halloween party for children when the flyover occurred. The White House posted a video of the flyover on one of its social media accounts, calling it “an epic Air Force One flyover at the White House for the trick-or-treaters!”
The District of Columbia city council said in a social media post that only 15 minutes’ notice was provided before the flyover “to anyone in downtown DC, at the Pentagon, or at National Airport. It startled many, including us.”
Airline officials also said they had less than an hour’s notice before the flyover.
The airplane also flew over nearby Washington neighborhoods.
Some people flying to Washington reported that their planes were forced to circle or that they faced delays due to the flyover. FlightAware, a flight-tracking website, said 26% of departing flights and 17% of arriving flights were delayed on Thursday — or 202 in total. Most of those delays were tied to the airport disruption.
Trump is a fan of Air Force One flyovers and they often happen at major sporting events he is attending.
(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
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