FAA nationwide ground stop delays ASU Football flight
Ground stop strands ASU football team
An FAA ground stop issued just before 2 p.m. Arizona time has left travel plans in limbo for Arizona State ahead of Saturday's game. A college football team from Utah is also affected.
PHOENIX - The Arizona State football team is returning to campus Friday night to rest at home and now plans to fly to Florida on Saturday morning ahead of its game against Central Florida, following travel disruptions caused by a nationwide Federal Aviation Administration ground stop.
Kickoff at Acrisure Bounce House in Orlando remains scheduled for 3:30 p.m. EST Saturday, Nov. 14.
The Sun Devils' charter flight to Orlando was originally slated to depart Friday afternoon before the FAA stoppage grounded flights across the country. Rather than waiting out the delay at the airport, Arizona State opted to send players back to campus before attempting the cross-country flight on game day.
Arizona State football returned to Tempe Friday night, Nov. 13, after an FAA ground stop halted its charter flight. The Sun Devils plan to fly to Orlando Saturday morning before kickoff.
What they're saying:
Arizona State football initially posted on X "Next stop: Orlando" before heading to Florida, only to post about 40 minutes later saying, "We spoke too soon," after getting stuck at Sky Harbor.
Kyson Brown posted on his Instagram account saying, "Maybe it’s Friday the 13th" that everything went down, sharing footage showing the players had boarded their charter flight before being removed and left stuck in a holding pattern inside the terminal.
FOX 10's Robby Baker spoke briefly via text message with Graham Rossini, the university's athletic director, to ask for the latest status. Rossini stated that the team’s plan is to bus back to campus, rest at home in Tempe and attempt to recharter the next morning as soon as possible, assuming air travel returns to normal. As of Friday, Rossini confirmed the game remains on as scheduled.
The Source: Information in this report was gathered from the Arizona State football X account; Kyson Brown's Instagram account; and Graham Rossini, athletic director for the university.