The US restored air traffic after an hours-long halt to all departures due to problems with air traffic control communication systems. The airspace reopened at 8:15 p.m. Eastern Time, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced at a White House press conference.
The Federal Aviation Administration lifted the nationwide ban on all departing flights. Administration officials identified the cause as a problem with “overloaded” and “outdated” systems at regional air traffic control centers.
“At 8:15 p.m. Eastern Time, we reopened the airspace,” Duffy said. According to him, the crisis is linked to equipment from the 1980s, and modernizing the analog system would require at least $50 billion. The secretary called on Congress to provide the funding.
Thousands of Canceled and Delayed Flights
According to data cited by NOVA and the Bulgarian News Agency, at least 4,000 flights have been canceled, while another 10,000 are operating with delays. At Chicago O’Hare International Airport, at least 208 flights have been canceled.
The nationwide grounding of flights led to hundreds of aircraft being diverted. Lifting the ban does not mean an immediate return to the normal schedule, as many aircraft and crews are outside their pre-planned positions.
One passenger on a flight to Chicago said that after landing, the plane began taxiing, but the crew announced there was a problem with the frequencies. Instead of the promised 10 minutes, passengers waited around two and a half hours for a gate.
Authorities Rule Out Connection to Cyberattack
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said there was no evidence of a cyberattack. He also stressed that the incident was unrelated to Microsoft’s large-scale outage the previous day.
The flight stoppage was introduced due to “extraordinary circumstances” and safety concerns after communication problems affected regional air traffic control centers. Once the systems were restored, departures were allowed to resume, but airlines warned that schedule disruptions would continue until aircraft and crews were returned to their planned routes.
Sources: nova.bg, apnews.com