Multiple flights to and from Kodiak were canceled Thursday, July 24, after an Alaska Airlines plane hit more than one deer on the runway while landing in the morning.
According to a spokesperson for the airline, Tim Thompson, Alaska Airlines flight 231 was coming into Kodiak around 8 a.m. Thursday from Anchorage and struck at least two deer that were crossing in front of the plane.
No passengers onboard the Boeing 737 or Alaska Airlines employees were injured during the collision. But inspectors did find damage to the aircraft’s main landing gear which requires the plane to remain in Kodiak until it can be repaired.
All remaining passenger flights for the day, flight 232, flight 88, flight 89 and flight 177 to and from the island were canceled as a result. That also includes Friday morning’s flight at 7 a.m. from Kodiak to Anchorage. Thompson said via email that affected guests are being rebooked and the airline apologizes for the inconvenience.
One of those passengers set to fly out Friday morning on July 25 was local resident Daniel Smith. He said after these unexpected flight cancellations he won’t be going off island for his birthday this weekend.
“Yeah I was supposed to travel to the [Mat-Su] Valley and then going to Kasilof actually for the weekend. My mom and I were going to get an AirBnb," Smith said. "And so now because of these cancellations we’re just going to have to cancel the entire trip.”
During the summer months, Alaska Airlines typically flies from Kodiak to Anchorage three times a day on flights 196, 232 and 88, and returns to the island three times as well on flights 231, 89 and 177.
Regional air carrier Island Air, which shares Kodiak’s runway with Alaska Airlines’ passenger and cargo planes, is still flying its normal schedule of flights Thursday. But an Island Air employee told KMXT via phone that they had a surge of charter flights booked that day as a result of the Alaska Airlines’ cancellations.
