Blackout hits Jeddah flights

(MENAFN- Arab News) There was a blackout at King Abdul Aziz International Airport (KAIA) in Jeddah on Thursday morning for up to 40 minutes in some areas leading to a shutdown of the baggage loading system and flight delays.
A 15-second shutdown in one area was resolved by back-up generators but other departments were affected for 30 minutes a source at KAIA was quoted as saying in local media on Thursday.
The blackout hit the South Terminal at 9:29 a.m. This interruption caused some trouble at check-in areas. There was also a problem with baggage handling which caused flight delays the source said.
'The electricity disruption at KAIA shocked passengers who were confused when the baggage-loading machines stopped working. My flight was delayed for 40 minutes. I was going to Riyadh on a business trip' Adel Hussain a Yemeni resident told Arab News.
'The generators saved the situation at KAIA. Several passengers could not load their baggage. There was limited damage in some areas while in other areas there were no operations for more than 40 minutes' said Abdul Aziz Habib a Sudanese passenger who was preparing to travel to Dammam on Thursday.
KAIA suffered similar problems in March 2013 which the airport's administration blamed on the Saudi Electricity Company.