Smoke from Canadian Forest Fires Contributes to Airport Traffic
Snarl

By JOSHUA SABATINI

Smoke from about 45 fires burning in northern Quebec and fanned by
winds out of the north spread a haze throughout New England on Sunday
that contributed to record delays at Martha's Vineyard Airport.

Amid high numbers of passengers and air traffic volume typical of
the Fourth of July holiday, airport manager Bill Weibrecht said the wall
of haze slowed operations.

Islanders waking up Sunday morning were greeted with a most unusual
looking sun cloaked in an eerie pink hue. Those arriving at the Island
airport Sunday afternoon to catch flights home after the long weekend
were greeted with yet another surprise - flight delays.

Richard Kozian, station manager for Pan Am, said there were delays
but that everybody booked for a flight went out eventually.

US Airways Express saw its first delay late Sunday afternoon, said
station manager Mike Berube, when a 3:24 p.m. flight to Philadelphia
departed 40 minutes late.

Delays only increased as time ticked on. The US Airways 5:15 p.m.
flight to New York city's LaGuardia Airport was delayed two hours;
the 5:55 p.m. flight on the same route by an hour and 45 minutes.

Cape Air spokeswoman Michelle Haynes said delays stemming from the
heavy traffic and haze created a snowball effect. By Sunday afternoon,
passengers were experiencing delays up to four hours, said Renee
Josephson, Cape Air's Island station manager.

Some passengers opted to wait it out while others decided to delay
flying for a day. Everyone who patiently stuck it out, Miss Josephson
said, eventually got to their destination, as Cape Air kept planes
flying past 10:30 p.m.

Ordinarily, Cape Air's last Sunday flight - to Hyannis
- is at 9:50 p.m.

The Island airport was busy again yesterday as those who
didn't get off the ground Sunday came in to try once more.

"The airport is weeding out" the overflow, Mr. Weibrecht
said yesterday.

Cape Air remained very busy Monday afternoon, but flights were not
delayed, Miss Josephson said.

Three main factors contributed to the Sunday delays: traffic volume,
weather and restrictions.

"Throughout the Northeast there was a good backup of
airplanes," said Mr. Weibrecht, in part due to "a generic
issue of clearance."

As a result, "a lot of airports - Philadelphia,
Providence, Metro New York, Boston - were not accepting traffic at
all" for a portion of Sunday afternoon, he explained.

Jim Peters, New England spokesman for the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), said the haze from the smoke of the Canadian
forest fires caused the FAA to issue air travel restrictions for the
six-state region. Every pilot had to file a flight plan before taking
off, only instrument-rated pilots were allowed to fly in the hazy
conditions and the spacing was increased between all planes in flight.

"If conditions impact safety, restrict visibility, it will
slow down flights," said Mr. Peters. Under such conditions, he
added, "It's not unusual to see a jam."

The Island's tower manager said the regulatory changes meant
it took more time to get planes off the ground.

Mr. Weibrecht said that announcements made in the airport terminal
on Sunday that cited problems in the tower were inaccurate.

He pointed also to the delays at mainland airports. Since the
Vineyard's airport is part of the larger aviation network, delays
elsewhere affect the timing of flight departures on the Island.

Mr. Peters of the FAA said private aircraft throughout New England
were also impacted. The heavy air traffic on the Vineyard came in part
from private planes - "More than ever," said Mr.
Weibrecht.

"Because Martha's Vineyard has a large mix of private
aircraft and commercial, they get pushed back from the gate, nobody
jumps ahead in line," said Mr. Peters. "You can only get a
certain amount of aircraft in and out in an orderly fashion; it creates
a backlog."

On the ground level, the air conditions led the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) to issue an air-quality advisory yesterday.

"People with respiratory disease such as asthma should limit
outdoor exertion while the smoke and haze are still present," said
Robert W. Varney, EPA regional administrator.

The EPA advised people with respiratory or heart disease, the
elderly and children to "limit prolonged exertion."

Late yesterday, the EPA reported that "smoke from the
wildfires in Quebec is not expected to impact air pollution levels in
New England today."