Mail delays could last for weeks - even when flights get back to normal, Postmaster General Clevelyn Crichlow predicted yesterday.

He said 70 percent of Bermuda's mail came out of America and even when daily flights to the Island resume there will be further delays as internal US flights take time to settle.

He said: "It will be staggered. It will put the mail back weeks."

"We have never had a situation like this before. When we had Hurricane Emily we were the problem.

"It is the biggest problem I have had to deal with outside strikes."

He said the public had been understanding as they waited for their mail which runs at an average of 150,000 items a week,.

But he added: "We do not anticipate a quick return to normalcy as more stringent security measures are being instituted which will result in a slower despatch of the mail."

Courier firms have also been hit by the flight ban, but they are more confident of recovering quicker because they have their own planes so they won't have to queue for space on regular airlines.

Federal Express manager Roger Moniz said: "We won't have any problem serving our customers at all once we get clearance. We will fly on Sunday if necessary."

He said his firm could help out the Post Office as it has a contract with the US Postal Service while Glen Smith, president of International Bonded Couriers also offered help.

And he said the three-day backlog at his firm could be cleared with just one flight.

Last night, Mr. Crichlow said Bermuda's Post Office might use courier planes for outgoing mail but incoming mail from the US was entirely in the hands of the US Post office.