Delta flight forced back to Atlanta after runway lights go out...

A Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta was one of two planes forced to abort landings at an airport in North Carolina late Wednesday night after instrument landing systems and runway lights were mistakenly turned off.

Officials at the Wilmington, N.C., airport had planned to turn off the lights and landing systems at 12:15 a.m. Thursday for scheduled runway repaving, but they were turned off an hour early.

Federal Aviation Administration officials in Atlanta were able to get the lights back on after the mistake was discovered, but not before a Delta flight had already turned back to Atlanta.

A second flight, a US Airways plane, returned to Charlotte, where it originated.

Gary Broughton, operations director at the Wilmington airport, told local TV station WECT that the two planes could not land because navigational aids had been turned off.

He blamed the mistake on human error.

The airport’s control tower is normally closed from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., with the FAA’s Washington Center controlling the airspace when the tower is closed, according to Broughton.

The FAA issued a statement saying the agency is investigating the incident.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

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