After an unexpected stay, an RDU visitor returns home to Paris on Wednesday

An Air France Boeing 787 that was unexpectedly stranded at Raleigh-Durham International Airport on the day after Thanksgiving was finally on its way home to Paris on Wednesday.

The jet was parked in RDU’s overnight lot for planes since its wing clipped a light pole on Nov. 24 as it taxied toward the gate at the north end of Terminal 2.

The plane had just arrived from France, and no one on board was injured. But the tip of its left wing was damaged enough that Air France had to scrub that evening’s outbound flight to Paris.

The plane was moved to what’s known as the Remain Overnight apron, where planes that need to spend the night at the airport are parked, and there it sat for 12 days. It happened that it was positioned directly in front of the airport’s observation park, where people could photograph the plane and speculate about its condition.

Some delighted in taking photos of the plane and the regularly scheduled Paris flight arriving in the afternoon on the nearby runway — two Air France jets where until recently there had been none.

Damage to the left wing tip was evident from the park, but why it took 12 days to repair isn’t clear. A spokeswoman for Air France would only say Wednesday that repairs had been made and the plane was scheduled to return to Paris.

The trip home, which left shortly after 4 p.m., was what’s known as a ferry flight, with no passengers on board.

Air France began flying between RDU and Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport on Oct. 30, taking over a route that Delta Air Lines began in 2016 and revived in 2021 after the COVID-19 pandemic subsided. Air France and Delta are partners, seamlessly selling tickets on each other’s flights.

Air France is flying the Paris route three days a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, compared to Delta’s daily service. But the airline is scheduled to resume daily flights on March 31, in time for spring and summer vacation travel.