It’s uncertain whether the Federal Aviation Administration’s nationwide ground stop Friday will impact the Spurs’ travel plans this weekend.
The Spurs’ flight to Salt Lake City is scheduled to leave San Antonio at 2 p.m. Saturday. Their game against the Utah Jazz is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. Mountain Standard Time (4 p.m. in San Antonio) Sunday at the Delta Center.
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The FAA grounded all flights nationwide Friday due to communications problems at regional air traffic control centers, an FAA notice said, per The Associated Press.
The ground stop was being imposed “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety,” The AP reported.
There is no timeline for restarting flights.
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson will no doubt be asked about the team’s contingency plans when he meets with reporters at 6:45 p.m. Friday ahead of the game against the Golden State Warriors at the Frost Bank Center.
The Texas football team has temporarily been grounded in Austin after its flight to Louisiana was shut down as part of a nationwide order by the FAA because of a “temporary communication” problem.
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The Longhorns, who are scheduled to play LSU at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, were set to depart from Austin at 3 p.m. Friday when they were notified their charter flight was on hold. Texas travels 74 players to SEC road games.
They are one of several SEC teams who had not yet left for their designations, including Tennessee, which plays at Texas A&M on Saturday.
The Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs have experience when it comes to flight delays.
Last season, they defeated the Orlando Magic 112-103 on Feb. 2 at the Frost Bank Center in a game that started five hours late after the Spurs dealt with a series of travel woes stemming from a winter storm that hit North Carolina while they were playing the Hornets in Charlotte.
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The Spurs planned to fly out two hours after that game, but had to stay overnight because of the storm that dumped nearly a foot of snow in and around North Carolina’s largest city.
“It was ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles’ a little bit,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said after the game against Orlando, referring to the 1987 road trip comedy film starring Steve Martin and the late John Candy. “Had a little bit the COVID PTSD just with the uncertainty, but it was good. We got back to the hotel last night and got some sleep and stuff, so some good quality time.
“Reminded me a little bit of the G League days. Had those long travel days, and bust out some cards or tell some jokes and stuff.”
Staff writer Kirk Bohls contributed to this story.
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This article originally published at Will nationwide ground stop affect Spurs’ flight plans this weekend?.
