Flight Cancellation

Summary

A request was made regarding the closure time of Ronaldsway Airport runway on 15 June 2023 and its link to an easyJet flight cancellation. The Department of Infrastructure disclosed that the runway closed at its normal time, the flight was cancelled due to airline delays preventing operation past the 2300 hrs curfew, and no information was held regarding the specific cause of those airline delays.

Key Facts

• The runway did not close earlier than usual on 15 June 2023.
• The airport could have extended operations until 2300 hrs but reverted to normal closing times after the flight cancellation.
• EasyJet flight 6551 from London Gatwick was cancelled due to accumulated delays during the day.
• The flight could not operate past the 2300 hrs curfew, which is 90 minutes past the official closing time.
• The Department of Infrastructure holds no information on the specific cause of the airline's early delays.

Data Disclosed

• 15 June 2023
• 2130 hrs
• 2300 hrs
• 90 mins
• Flight Number: 6551
• 2024-07-23
• 2024-07-31
• 4006353

Original Request

1. What time did Ronaldsway airport runway close on 15 June 2023? 2. Is the answer to question one the usual runway closure time (business as usual)? If not please provide the standard operating hours for Ronaldsway runway. 3. Did the closure time of the runway on 15 June 2023 cause the flight from London Gatwick (LGW) to Isle of Man (IOM), Flight Number: 6551 run by easyJet to be cancelled? 4. What was the reason for the earlier than usual closure time of the runway on 15 June 2023?

Data Tables (1)

Full Response Text

Department of Infrastructure Sea Terminal Building, Douglas, Isle of Man, IM1 2RF

Contact: FOI Response Team Telephone: (01624) 686785 Email: dpo-doi@gov.im

Our ref: 4006353 30 July 2024

Dear ###

We write further to your request, received 23 July 2024, which states:

"1. What time did Ronaldsway airport runway close on 15 June 2023?

1. Is the answer to question one the usual runway closure time (business as usual)? If not please provide the standard operating hours for Ronaldsway runway.

2. Did the closure time of the runway on 15 June 2023 cause the flight from London Gatwick (LGW) to Isle of Man (IOM), Flight Number: 6551 run by easyJet to be cancelled?

3. What was the reason for the earlier than usual closure time of the runway on 15 June 2023?"

Our response to your request is as follows: Some information held

1) The Airport’s opening hours are publicly available, but we do have a seasonal summer closing time of 2130 hrs on top of this. However, the Airport can extend beyond this should we be requested to but cannot go past 2300 hrs due to Air Traffic Control operational hours which is similar to most other regional airports. On 15th June 2023, the Airport could offer an extension until 2300 hrs but with the cancellation of the flight, this was ultimately not needed.

2) Whilst the Airport ultimately closed at the normal time, we had originally accepted a request to stay open until 2300 hrs, which wasn’t needed after the cancellation and therefore reverted back to normal closing times.
3) The EasyJet flight was cancelled due to delays it had picked up in the day which meant that it couldn’t have operated past our “curfew” of 2300 hrs (which is 90 mins past our official closing time). We hold no information as to the cause of those early delays as the Airlines don’t routinely tell us details beyond what they put on their app to the public. 4) The runway didn’t close any earlier than usual on that day. It closed at our stated time, even though we could offer an extension up until 2300 hrs.

Please quote the reference number 4006353 in any future communications.

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I will now close your request as of this date.