Mandela Schedule Delayed
Nelson Mandela’s plane will arrive at Los Angeles International Airport at least an hour behind schedule today, delaying a welcoming ceremony and a speech at City Hall for at least that much time, Mayor Bradley’s office said Tuesday.
The Mandela entourage, including his wife Winnie, had been scheduled to arrive at 10:30 a.m., but the earliest the plane will touch down is 11:30 a.m., said Bradley’s press secretary, Bill Chandler.
Neither Chandler or representatives of the local Nelson Mandela Reception Committee knew the cause of the delay.
As of early Thursday evening, there were no plans to cancel any of the City Hall activities. An entertainment program scheduled to precede Mandela’s speech from the 1st Street steps of City Hall will begin--as planned--at 10:30 a.m., Chandler said.
Other events planned for Friday include a 1 p.m. speech by Mandela at City Hall; a 4:30 p.m. student march to the Coliseum, and the largest event of the day, a 7:30 p.m. concert and rally at the Coliseum. Mandela is tentatively scheduled to speak at the rally at 9 p.m.
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