Atlanta airport scrubs overnight power outages until after July 4th holiday
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was planning for a few hours of overnight power outages on two nights this week to test its emergency lighting system.
But that work affecting the domestic terminal has been delayed until after the July Fourth holiday weekend, the airport said Tuesday.
The initial test, which would have stretched into the early morning hours of Tuesday, was scrubbed because of “flight operations concerns” and impact to passengers, an airport spokesperson said.
The planned second test, largely during the early hours of Thursday, will also be delayed because of holiday travel volumes.
The testing will still happen, but likely not until the July 8-15 time frame, as part of a long-term effort to upgrade the airport’s electrical systems.
As initially announced, the overnight outages would affect the main security checkpoint, airport lighting, escalators, elevators, some interior doors, ticketing counters and baggage claim systems between 11:59 p.m. and 2:30 a.m.
When the outages do occur, passengers should expect “limited lighting,” airport officials said on social media.
Since a disastrous 2017 power outage that shut Hartsfield-Jackson down for 11 hours, the airport has been working toward building an entire redundant power system.
Georgia Power committed to provide $130 million in generators toward the goal.
About the Author
As a business reporter, Emma Hurt leads coverage of the Atlanta airport, Delta Air Lines, UPS, Norfolk Southern and other travel and logistics companies. Prior to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution she worked as an editor and Atlanta reporter for Axios, a politics reporter for WABE News and a business reporter for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
