Most airline flights remain grounded

The skies over Iowa and the rest of the United States will remain mostly quiet again today.Federal officials had originally said they might lift the ban on commercial air traffic this morning. But, Des Moines airport spokesman Michael Audino says the Federal Aviation Administration has grounded all flights today, except for planes that were diverted to airports yesterday. He says those diverted flights can leave, with some restrictions. They can only leave with their original passengers, but cannot take on new passengers. Audino says five flights were diverted to the Des Moines airport Tuesday. Most will leave Des Moines empty today, as the original passengers have found other ways to get to their destinations. He doesn’t know when the planes will fly again. Audino says he’s not been given any indication of when the FAA will allow flights again, although he says American Airlines is hoping to resume flights again at noon on Thursday.