US flights grounded nationwide after air traffic control communications outage
The Federal Aviation Administration halted all flights on Friday due to telecommunications issues at regional air traffic control centres.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded all flights nationwide on Friday afternoon following communications problems at regional air traffic control centres, according to reports from Telangana Today, The Times of India and Deccan Chronicle. This marks only the second such nationwide ground stop since the September 11, 2001, attacks.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters at the White House that there was no indication of a nefarious act or a national security threat. He stated the disruption was a telecommunications outage and added that all passengers were safe.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the agency was investigating the issue affecting 22 regional air traffic control centres. The outage appears to have affected a telecommunications network overseen by L3Harris Technologies, which handles critical radio frequencies used by controllers to communicate with pilots.
The disruption caused significant chaos, with FlightAware reporting that airlines cancelled more than 1,000 flights and delayed nearly 10,000. On Saturday, more than 700 flights were cancelled, with Delta Air Lines cancelling 5 per cent of its flights and United Airlines cancelling 4 per cent.
The incident highlights strain on aging infrastructure, as the FAA works to overhaul outdated technology. The White House and Department of Transportation have urged Congress to approve an additional USD 30.1 billion to upgrade the air traffic control system.
