Mesaba blamed for stranding passengers in Rochester

Federal investigators on Friday blamed a Mesaba Airlines representative at the Rochester airport for stranding 47 passengers for about six hours on a regional airliner this month.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) preliminary investigation found that the representative for Mesaba, the only carrier staffing the airport at that time, "improperly refused the requests of the ExpressJet captain to let her passengers off the plane, telling the captain that the airport was closed to passengers for security reasons."

According to transcripts of transmissions from the cockpit released Friday, the pilot grew frustrated during the course of what she called a "ridiculous" ordeal, in which passengers on the nearly full plane had virtually nothing to eat, and the toilet and babies on board began to smell.

"I just can't sit here any longer," she radioed to ExpressJet dispatchers in Houston. "... There's no food, and [the passengers are] just getting really unhappy. ... We're stuck here with no lavs, no nothing. ... There are lawsuits about this kind of stuff."

Mesaba CEO John Spanjers said his company "disagrees with the DOT's preliminary findings," calling them "incongruent with our initial internal review. ... Mesaba offered assistance as a courtesy during this delay."

On Aug. 8, the flight from Houston to the Twin Cities was redirected to Rochester because of severe weather at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. It arrived about midnight, and passengers weren't allowed off the 50-seat plane until 6 a.m. the next day. The passengers eventually reboarded Continental Flight 2816, operated by ExpressJet, and reached the Twin Cities in midmorning with a new crew.

Security reason disputed

ExpressJet said Friday that its crew members -- a pilot, copilot and flight attendant -- did what they could to keep passengers comfortable. "They provided beverages, pillows, blankets and air conditioning during the entire duration of the delay," ExpressJet said.

In the terminal, according to the federal findings, Mesaba was "the only carrier in a position to help the stranded plane" but its representative rejected the crew's request to let its passengers in "because there was no one from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) available to screen passengers."

However, the department said, TSA rules allow passengers to get off a plane, enter the terminal and reboard without being screened again "as long as they remain in a secure area."

The airport's manager not only has said the passengers should have been admitted to a secure area, he noted that a Delta flight that also was diverted to Rochester that night allowed its passengers to deplane at 3:30 a.m.

Mesaba is a wholly owned subsidiary of Northwest Airlines, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines.

Delta CEO Richard Anderson said in a statement Friday that he has contacted Continental Chairman and CEO Larry Kellner to "ensure we fully understand the facts of this unfortunate incident. Delta is working with Mesaba to conduct an internal investigation, continue our full cooperation with the DOT and share all the facts with Continental."

'Frustrated' with lack of help

Kellner and ExpressJet President and CEO Jim Ream expressed satisfaction that investigators recognized the crew's efforts.

The preliminary federal investigation also found that while the crew repeatedly tried to get permission to deplane the passengers at the airport or onto a bus, more senior personnel within Continental or ExpressJet should have become involved in the effort to allow the passengers off the plane.

"You know, learning more about the facts of this incident hasn't done a whole lot to temper my anger at the way those passengers were treated," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood wrote Friday on his department blog. "I mean, there was really a complete lack of common sense here. It's no wonder the flying public is so frustrated."

Members of the DOT's Aviation Enforcement Office interviewed passengers, the flight crew, airport personnel among others. Investigators also listened to audio recordings from the aircraft and the dispatcher.

Department spokesman Bill Mosley said that the enforcement office "is considering the appropriate action to take against Mesaba" after the full investigation is complete "within a few weeks."

The incident has prompted calls for passage of a passengers' bill of rights pending in Congress.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482