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It’s so hot in Phoenix that airplanes can’t fly

An American Eagle jet is seen through heat ripples as it lands at Sky Harbor International Airport, Monday, June 19, 2017 ,in Phoenix. American Airlines canceled dozens flights out of Phoenix today due to extreme heat. (Matt York / Associated Press)
By David Montero Los Angeles Times

LAS VEGAS – Dozens of flights were delayed and canceled out of Phoenix Sky Harbor on Tuesday as the city – and much of the region – withered under another day of excessively hot temperatures.

The National Weather Service reported that Phoenix was expected to hit 120 degrees by late Tuesday afternoon. That would be 2 degrees shy of the all-time hottest recorded temperature in Phoenix set in 1990.

Las Vegas also was expected to tie its all-time hottest mark of 117 degrees. That hasn’t happened since 2013, and it would be only the third time the city has reached that temperature.

National Weather Service meteorologist Kate Guillet said the temperatures are expected to remain hot through the rest of the week – though Tuesday was to be the peak day for heat.

American Airlines said seven flights had been delayed out of Phoenix because of the heat and 43 regional flights have been canceled Tuesday.

The airline said the Bombardier CRJ regional aircraft can operate under a maximum temperature of 118 degrees. Those are largely the American Eagle flights operated by Mesa and SkyWest that have 90 departures and 90 arrivals daily.

There were four heat-related delays out of McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas on Monday, but none had been reported for Tuesday.

Christine Crews, spokeswoman for the airport, said in hotter temperatures the airport uses a longer east-west runway for some of the larger planes with heavier loads. The hotter the temperatures get, the thinner the air gets, and more speed is needed for planes to take off.

But flight delays or cancellations are ultimately decided by the airlines.

The largest carrier out of Las Vegas is Southwest – which, like American, serves Spokane International Airport – said it reported no delays or cancellations because of the heat. It also reported no cancellations out of Phoenix.

Hainan Airlines launched the first two nonstop flights from Las Vegas to Beijing in late 2016 but announced in May it was changing the departure times out of McCarran in the summer from late afternoon to early morning because of the heat.

McCarran International Airport is the eighth-busiest airport in the country. Phoenix Sky Harbor is the 11th-busiest airport.