US to resume flights after air traffic network failure sparks chaos

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted a nationwide ground stop on Friday following a communications failure at air traffic control centers, marking the longest shutdown since September 11, 2001. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that US airspace reopened at 8:15 p.m. Eastern Time, but warned that departures would resume gradually and airlines would take time to restore normal operations.

Over 6,600 flights were canceled and 8,600 delayed, leaving many passengers stranded at airports across the country. The failure began at 3:36 p.m. when radar and communications systems at control centers became unstable, causing inconsistency in data and forcing the FAA to shut down the system. While flying was deemed safe, Duffy emphasized the need for a broader overhaul of the aging air traffic control system, calling for US$50 billion in modernization funding.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated that there was no evidence of a cyberattack or rogue AI system causing the outage. The National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security were investigating the incident, which appeared to stem from a telecommunications network overseen by L3Harris Technologies, responsible for critical radio frequencies between controllers and pilots.

Despite the ground stop being lifted, passengers faced ongoing disruptions, with stranded travelers in various cities planning overnight stays and rescheduled flights. Airlines were not obligated to provide compensation to stranded passengers, as they were not responsible for the FAA system failures.