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JFK Airport’s Terminal 1 back open after power outage caused disruption

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Editor’s note: This post was updated with new information.

New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) is fully operational again after Terminal 1 closed last Thursday following a power outage.

While a limited number of flight operations could resume Saturday, full service at the terminal did not resume until Sunday.

Terminal 1 caters to around 5% of all JFK’s scheduled passenger flights; this includes services by Air France, China Eastern, Japan Airlines, Lufthansa, Norse Atlantic Airways and Swiss.

The trouble at one of the U.S.’s busiest airports began Feb. 16 — the result of an electrical panel failure.

The failure not only caused the power outage but also sparked a “small isolated fire overnight that was immediately extinguished,” according to the statement.

Following the incident, the airport released a Twitter statement: “JFK Terminal 1 will remain closed on 2/17 due to electrical issues as the Port Authority continues working with the terminal’s operator to restore flight operations as quickly as possible. Travelers should check with their carriers for flight status before coming to the airport.”

JFK tweet
TWITTER

Terminal 1’s “ability to accept inbound and outbound flights” was affected, with some flights redirected to other JFK terminals.

Some flights were redirected to other U.S. airports along the East Coast, and some were forced to take a U-turn midair back to their original airport. At least 39 flights were canceled Friday, according to Reuters.

Among them were a Korean Air flight from Seoul’s Incheon International Airport (ICN) and an ITA Airways flight to Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP) — both of which had been in the air for several hours.

The unfortunate route taken by an Air New Zealand flight to JFK on Thursday. FLIGHT RADAR 24

Unluckiest of all, though, was Air New Zealand Flight ANZ2 from Auckland Airport (AKL) to JFK.

Its passengers made it a good way across the Pacific Ocean before their flight turned back to AKL. They ultimately spent a fruitless 16 hours in the air, and the epic about-face was captured by Flightradar24.

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