Flights ‘gradually’ resuming after FAA computer outages
A Federal Aviation Administration computer outage brought air traffic to a virtual standstill Wednesday morning, the FAA said.
The agency eventually cleared flights to depart from the Newark Liberty and Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson airports around 9 a.m. EDT, while departures resumed “gradually” at other airports later in the morning.
More than 1,000 domestic flights were canceled and more than 7,000 were delayed due to the issue, which occurred on a day when 21,000 domestic flights were scheduled to depart U.S. airports, according to the aviation tracker Cirium. Another 1,840 international flights were scheduled to arrive in U.S. Wednesday. Thousands were affected by the the NOTAMs — or Notice to Air Missions system — outage.
Pilots rely on the system for real-time information on flight hazards and restrictions. Before takeoff, they’re required to consult NOTAMs for potential adverse impacts on flights, which could include runway construction or the possibility of icing.
According to FAA advisories, the NOTAM system went down Tuesday just before 8:30 p.m., preventing pilots from receiving any new or updated notices. The FAA relied on a telephone hotline to keep departures flying overnight, but the backup system quickly became overwhelmed as air traffic increased into the morning hours.
The number of flight cancellations and delays continued to climb throughout the morning despite the agency lifting its ground stop. Airlines nationwide asked flyers to remain patient.
“Delta is safely focused on managing our operation during this morning’s FAA ground stop for all carriers,” Delta Airlines tweeted. “We will provide more updates as soon as we can.”
American Airlines said was “working with the FAA to minimize customer disruptions” while Alaska Airlines and Jet Blue urged customers to watch for scheduling changes.
Airports in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Atlanta were seeing between 30% and 40% of flights delayed.
The White House said there is no evidence of a cyberattack, but President Biden ordered the Department of Transportation to conduct a “full investigation” into the system meltdown, which ruined travel plans for milions.
“FAA has determined that the safety system affected by the overnight outage is fully restored, and the nationwide ground stop will be lifted effective immediately,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. “I have directed an after-action process to determine root causes and recommend next steps.”
Earlier Wednesday, the FAA grounded all flights departing the United States, citing the technical glitch.
“Technicians are currently working to restore the system and there is no estimate for restoration of the service at this time,” an early advisory stated.
With News Wire Services
