Alaska & Delta: Flight Disruptions at SEA Airport Due to Fuel Leak

Alaska and Delta airlines anticipate possible flight disruptions at Seattle's SEA airport due to an Olympic Pipeline fuel leak. Alaska is tankering fuel to mitigate impacts. Airport states no significant impact yet.

SEA-based Alaska Airlines, the airport’s leading provider with an approximately 50% market share, is taking a series of actions focused on avoiding flight disturbances. Delta Air Lines, the second-largest carrier at the flight terminal with around a 25% market share, has actually advised travelers there might be prospective disruptions to long-haul trips.

Alaska’s Mitigation Strategies

“The dozen flights selected for a gas stop modification daily, yet are concentrated on transcontinental courses, such as SEA-JFK and flights to the Hawaiian Islands,” Alaska claimed. “Likewise, the fuel stop locations transform daily.”

The airline company added: “We have not canceled any type of flights as a result of fuel supply concerns as a result of our capacity to handle fuel using these approaches. We continue to be in close interaction with Olympic Pipe, refineries and our flight terminal companions, and will certainly interact if we begin to see functional impacts.”

Airport’s Stance on Disruptions

A SEA speaker stated the airport is not yet seeing a “significant influence to flights,” including: “We continue to stay in touch with the airline companies as they manage flight schedules and the acquisition of fuel delivered to the airport.”

Olympic Pipeline Shutdown

SEA counts on the Olympic Pipeline, had by BP, to provide jet gas to the flight terminal. A leakage was found throughout regular maintenance on Nov. 11, leading to the pipeline being closed down. BP is collaborating with federal and state authorities to fix the leakage, however there is no sign regarding when the pipe will be back on-line.

The airline company is tankering gas– carrying even more fuel than is needed to fly a path– on inbound flights to Seattle. Alaska said in many cases it is able to “roundtrip fuel from the departure city, decreasing the amount of gas required from SEA.”