Peruvian Airport Shut Down for Nearly Seven Hours by Stalled Plane

LIMA, Peru (AP) -- Lima's Jorge Chavez International Airport was shut down for nearly seven hours Tuesday, with international flights diverted to other airports around the country, after an Antonov cargo plane broke down during takeoff and blocked the main runway.

Thousands of passengers waiting for national and international flights were delayed.

The breakdown occurred around 7:15 a.m. (1215 GMT) and flights resumed around 2:00 p.m. (1900 GMT).

Chilean-run Lan airline apologized to the more than 2,500 of its passengers who were affected.

The Antonov, owned by Peruvian cargo company, Aero Transporte S.A., carrying a pilot and co-pilot and four tons of cargo for an in-country flight, was about to take off when it suffered an unspecified mechanical failure, said airport spokeswoman Claudia Vivanco.

Peru's airport authority, CORPAC, said in a statement that international flights from Los Angeles, Miami, Brazil and Bolivia, among others, were diverted to coastal airports north and south of the capital, Lima, as well as to Arequipa.