By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, June 16 (Reuters) - Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport will close on July 4 starting at noon (1600 GMT) due to 250th U.S. anniversary events in the U.S. capital region including a military flyover, according to the regional agency that manages its operations.
The airport, located in Arlington, Virginia, near downtown Washington, also will close for several hours on July 3 for rehearsals of those events, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said on Tuesday.
The closures will force the cancellation of hundreds of flights.
The airport is expected to reopen early on July 5.
United Airlines said it has "planned for this restriction and have scheduled accordingly so that there is no expected customer impact."
American Airlines said it will pause operations at the airport between 9:45 a.m. and 1 p.m. on July 3. The airline said that it changed its schedules earlier to address the impact, and that customers were informed and have been rebooked on new flights.
Southwest Airlines said it proactively pulled down most of its schedule for the July 4 afternoon "in anticipation of the airspace closure and will adjust as necessary once the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) posts the official notices."
Delta Air Lines said it has proactively reduced flight schedules for the July 3-4 period, and has "communicated with customers to accommodate them on other flights."
The airport faced temporary flight restrictions last weekend during other events celebrating the 250th anniversary of the U.S. founding, including the Ultimate Fighting Championship's bouts hosted at the White House.
The regional agency said the airport will face disruptions due to downtown flyovers or other aerial displays such as fireworks or parachute jumps on other dates as well including June 24 to 25, June 28, July 10 and August 22 to 23.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Will Dunham)
