Thousands of US flights cancelled after nationwide communications outage
US flights resumed after a nationwide ground stop caused by communications problems at air-traffic control facilities, but officials warned that delays and cancellations would continue as airlines restored normal operations.
U.S. flights resumed operations on Saturday following a four-hour nationwide communications outage that grounded thousands of flights on Friday. The incident, which left hundreds of thousands of passengers stranded, was described by officials as a legacy system problem caused by outdated equipment, including decades-old switches and routers.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reopened the airspace after restoring full functionality at air traffic control facilities on Friday night. However, officials emphasized that it would take time to fully resume normal operations. The FAA had previously requested $30.1 billion in funds to upgrade and modernize the air traffic control system, a request reiterated by Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.
The incident marked only the second time such an alert had been issued in U.S. airspace since the 9/11 attacks, with the first occurrence in 2023 due to a pilot notification system failure. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin dismissed any suspicion of foul play or a cyberattack, stating there was no evidence to support such claims.
The outage caused significant disruption at airports across the country, with passengers left uncertain about their travel plans and some resorting to alternative arrangements, such as extended breaks or family pick-ups.
Written by urgent.news from IOL's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
