Iowans Head for Pasadena En Masse

Hordes of Iowa Hawkeye fans are heading for Pasadena en masse, filling up the airport in Cedar Rapids where black and gold is the color of the day.

Iowa City TV station KCRG TV9 is reporting that anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 fans were leaving Tuesday for Pasadena via at least 13 Rose Bowl charter flights. On a typical weekday, 1,500 to 2,000 passengers take off from the Cedar Rapids airport.

The Eastern Iowa airport had to draft volunteers to help keep people entertained as they waited for flights delayed because of the weather. At Iowa’s largest airport, Des Moines International, many flights have been cancelled due to bad weather.

According to the KCRG TV9 report, airport director Marty Lenss said they expect Tuesday to be a record-breaker in the number of passengers handled in a day at the facility. Instead of regional jets with a capacity of 70 passengers, the charter is using large aircraft, including one 747 jumbo Tuesday afternoon, to accommodate Pasadena-bound fans.

Earlier airport advisories said charter passengers have been provided with a separate check-in gate just for Tuesday’s flights. The Transportation Security Administration also had assigned additional staff and equipment, opening two security screening lanes for charter passengers.

Even with the extra help, Hawkeye fans on commercial flights were still experiencing some problems Tuesday morning, a report on Iowa City’s The Gazette said. One flight to Denver was canceled, another to Chicago was delayed, and at least one Pasadena-bound couple routed through Dallas on American Airlines had their tickets canceled due to weather issues in Texas, said the report.

Another Rose Bowl charter flight leaves Cedar Rapids on December 30.