Yes, even popes have flight delays; remembering JPII’s emergency
Pope Leo’s departure from Spain was delayed after a ceremonial farewell, leaving the plane parked on the runway while the red carpet and flags were rolled away. The delay echoed a 1990 incident when Pope John Paul II’s flight was similarly postponed, highlighting that even heads of state face travel setbacks. During the pause, the king and high‑ranking clergy stood on the tarmac as the plane’s doors remained closed and the cockpit windows were open. The story underscores that even popes experience ordinary inconveniences, drawing public amusement and a sense of shared humanity.
4 months ago
The Vatican’s newest pontiff, Pope Leo XIV, experienced an unexpected aircraft technical problem that kept his plane on the runway in Spain, prompting a 30‑minute delay and a switch to a replacement aircraft provided by the Spanish king. The episode recalls a similar 1990 emergency landing of Pope John Paul II in Malta, which was later commemorated with an ex‑voto at the island’s national shrine of Ta’ Pinu. Inspired by the papal delay, a follow‑up article offers a set of Catholic‑themed suggestions for coping with flight disruptions, ranging from humility and charity to prayer and practical preparedness. 1 2
Pope Leo XIV boarded an Iberia flight to leave Madrid after a week‑long visit that included a military salute and a farewell from King Felipe VI. Shortly after the doors closed, the aircraft remained idle on the runway while the stairs were repeatedly moved and the pope and the king were seen chatting at the door. Airport officials announced an expected delay of at least 30 minutes, and the airline’s general director issued an apology. Because of the technical fault, a new plane was later dispatched from Madrid, and the king was reported to stay at the airport while the Holy Father awaited his onward journey to the Vatican. 1
In September 1990, Pope John Paul II’s aircraft suffered a mechanical failure en route to Tanzania and was forced to land in Malta. Earlier that year the pope had visited the national shrine of Ta’ Pinu on Gozo, praying before the Marian image. After the emergency landing, he attributed the safe outcome to the intercession of Our Lady, and a grateful pilgrim later placed an ex‑voto depicting the pope and the plane on the shrine’s walls. The incident is remembered as a rare papal aviation emergency. 1
A separate piece draws practical and spiritual lessons from the pope’s experience, offering seven concise recommendations for travelers:
These suggestions blend everyday travel wisdom with Catholic virtues, encouraging patience, generosity, and prayer when faced with the universal inconvenience of aircraft delays.*
Examine how papal travel delays reflect Catholic pastoral humility
Papal travel delays—whether caused by weather, logistics, security issues, or health—can become a kind of “real-time catechesis” of pastoral humility: they expose the limits of human planning and invite the Pope (and the Church’s leaders) to act less as masters of events and more as servants who “make room” for God’s providence and the needs of the people.
In Catholic moral theology, humility is not primarily an internal feeling; it is an ordered way of acting—especially when one’s plans are frustrated. When a program is delayed, the temptation is to center oneself: to treat the interruption as an affront, or to respond with impatience and a desire to reassert control. Catholic pastoral humility instead recognizes that ministry is not self-realization but “a readiness to know and do the will of him who sent them and not their own will.”
The Church explicitly ties humility to Christ’s pattern: “Because it fundamentally requires an imitatio Christi, holiness essentially involves humility.” Pope Francis likewise describes humility as God’s own way of dealing with us—God “lowers himself,” “does not impose himself,” and “makes room for us.” In that sense, whenever the Pope’s itinerary is disrupted and he responds with patience and service rather than self-assertion, the sign value is profound.
Catholic documents and papal teaching repeatedly present humility as the defining posture of authentic pastoral authority:
So, if a delay happens, Catholic pastoral humility is not merely “being nice.” It is: de-centering the self, accepting limits, and continuing to serve the people rather than demanding that the world arrange itself around the dignity of office.
Because delays make public the reality of constraint, they can either (a) intensify a leader’s need for control or (b) become occasions for pastoral charity. The Catholic option is the second.
Pope Francis describes humility as “emptying oneself,” and teaches that God’s way is the way of humility: “there is no other.” When travel plans change, the Pope’s pastoral posture can reflect that “emptying”: not clinging to a schedule as if it were the essence of the mission, but adjusting so that the mission remains centered on God and the people.
Catholic teaching connects humility to listening: Pope Francis notes pastors should “listen to the people,” and that ministers must be conscious they “always [have] something to learn.” In practice, during delays, the Pope can still relate to people (staff, local Church leaders, the faithful gathered, the sick or elderly who are present) in a way that communicates: the purpose is service, not public display.
Pope Leo XIV’s public remarks repeatedly frame Church leadership as solidarity with the vulnerable and a mercy-centered pastoral approach. For example, during a flight press conference, he explicitly commemorates Pope Francis by recalling how he “truly living in solidarity with the poorest, the most vulnerable, the sick, children and the elderly.” If delays occur, pastoral humility coheres with this mercy logic: the Pope’s attention should remain focused on those who are most affected by time, fatigue, or uncertainty—not on the convenience of schedules.
Papal humility is not only ethical; it is ecclesiological. In a Eucharistic homily remembering Benedict XVI, Pope Francis states that Christians—“especially the Pope, the Cardinals and the Bishops”—are called to be “humble labourers,” serving rather than seeking to be served, and putting “the fruits of the Lord’s vineyard before their advantage.”
Delay highlights the difference between:
Catholic teaching supports that the ministerial life is meant to function within the Church’s ordered structures and obedience, not isolated personal preference. Vatican II’s teaching on obedience in the priestly life is a useful analogue: ministry works “in hierarchical union,” and pastors should execute what is entrusted to them “with a willing heart.”
Even when speaking specifically about the priesthood, the principle applies to the papal office as well: the successor of Peter is not meant to treat his role as an entitlement to seamless control of time, weather, or circumstance.
Delays are not only about the Pope; they are also about the people who planned their day around the visit. Catholic humility reshapes how the faithful can interpret inconvenience:
Catholic pastoral humility becomes especially visible when papal travel is delayed: such moments strip away the illusion that ministry is centered on flawless logistics. The Church’s teaching presents humility as Christ’s pattern—God “makes room” for us, pastors avoid arrogance and listen, ministers serve with obedience, and leaders are “humble labourers” for the vineyard rather than masters of outcomes.