Delta Passengers ‘Trapped’ on Boston Logan Tarmac for Hours Due To Icy Weather

“My son has been trapped on plane on tarmac for hours and feels sick and has had no food. Get these people off those planes,” one Twitter user pleaded Sunday night. And they weren’t the only ones.

Multiple social media users took to Twitter after inbound Delta planes arriving at Boston Logan International Airport sat on the tarmac for hours late into the night, according to the passengers. Passengers said they were told it was “due to weather.” However, some of the passengers claimed it was more than that, blaming staffing shortages and pay.

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Delta Airlines issued an apology for the delay, according to NBC.

“We apologize to our customers who were inconvenienced and delayed due to winter weather in Boston,” a spokesperson told the outlet.

“The event combined with deicing delays lead to backups for departing and arriving flights. We are working to recover our operation and resume a normal flight schedule throughout the day.”

Delta had previously responded to one of the Twitter users at midnight Monday night, stating the issue was due to weather.

“Thanks for reaching out to us. We are experiencing excessive tarmac delays in Boston due to weather related events. We hope to get you on your way as soon as possible,” the company tweeted.

Boston Logan International Airport did not respond to the issue with Delta flights, but reminded travelers to check the statuses of flights due to winter weather. Delta nor Logan Airport responded to MassLive for comment as of 7 a.m. Monday morning.

A passenger listed a variety of reasons they were given for the delay, including “de-icing,” broken bathrooms, cold temperatures, and running out of fuel.

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They tweeted at 3:30 a.m. on Monday, “Echoing hundreds of @Delta passengers stranded on the floor at Boston Logan tonight: how frustrating to be lied to for 7hrs on the tarmac. Every excuse: lavatories ‘didn’t work’, ‘ran of fuel’, ‘de-icing’ and the best-temps in Chicago were ‘too cold’ at 39degrees! #embarrassing.”

Other users on Twitter demanded buses to be sent out to help the passengers stuck.

“@Delta @BostonLogan @CharlieBakerMA flight number 2990 from Atlanta we landed at 8:34pm and we are still sitting on runway! It has been 90 minutes! What are our rights??Our pilot is not getting any updates. The bathrooms are not working!!!!! This is inexcusable! send buses out,” said one Twitter user whose screen name read Deborah Ford.

Another Twitter user recalled the U.S. Department of Transportation’s guidelines on airline travel and when passengers must be allowed off of planes. It stated that passengers are allowed to get off after three hours for domestic flights.

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“Extremely disappointed with @Delta. Landed at Boston Logan Airport and have been sitting on the tarmac for multiple hours with minimal explanation from crew. Hoping no aviation consumer protection laws are breached @AyooJack,” the Twitter user wrote.

And another Twitter user had responded to the prior tweet in outrage over their family member being “trapped” on a tarmac at 12:30 a.m. Monday morning.

“This is outrageous. People are being held prisoners on those planes and need to get off right now. @Delta my son has been trapped on plane on tarmac for hours and feels sick and has had no food. Get these people off those planes!!@Massport @MassGovernor @boston25 @BostonLogan,” they wrote.

A reporter from Boston 25 shared a video of passengers sleeping on cots at the baggage claim in Boston Logan after the delayed inbound Delta flights. The caption read, “Passengers of several inbound @Delta flights left stranded at @BostonLogan after hours-long delays taxiing on the tarmac after landing. Many are sleeping on cots at baggage claim.”

The same reporter also stated a woman at the baggage claim said there were over 200 individuals sleeping on cots on Sunday night.