A computer outage at the Federal Aviation Administration brought flights to a standstill across the US, with hundreds of delays quickly cascading through the system at airports nationwide.
A US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) system outage has led to delays at airports across the country because of 'ground stops', Texas state's Austin-Bergstrom International Airport said.
The FAA said on Wednesday that it was working to restore a system that alerts pilots to hazards and changes to airport facilities and procedures that had stopped processing updated information.
"The FAA is still working to fully restore the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system following an outage. While some functions are beginning to come back on line, National Airspace System operations remain limited," it said on Twitter.
Update 3: The FAA is still working to fully restore the Notice to Air Missions system following an outage.⁰⁰The FAA has ordered airlines to pause all domestic departures until 9 a.m. Eastern Time to allow the agency to validate the integrity of flight and safety information.
— The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) January 11, 2023
No sign of cyberattack
There is no sign of a cyberattack "at this point" in the computer problem that triggered US authorities to pause all domestic air travel departures, the White House said, adding that President Joe Biden has been briefed.
"The president has been briefed by the secretary of transportation this morning on the FAA system outage. There is no evidence of a cyberattack at this point, but the President directed DOT to conduct a full investigation into the causes. The FAA will provide regular updates," tweeted Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, referring to the transport department and federal aviation authority.
More than 760 flights were delayed within, into, or out of the United States as of Wednesday 6:30 am ET, flight tracking website FlightAware showed, without citing the reasons.
An additional 91 flights within, into or out of the United States were also canceled.
A ground stop is an air traffic control measure that slows or halts aircraft at a given airport.
United Airlines said it had temporarily delayed all domestic flights and it would issue an up date when it learned more from the FAA.
"Arriving and departing passengers can expect delays this morning and throughout the day," Austin-Bergstrom International Airport said on Twitter.
#AUSAlert: An FAA system outage is causing ground stops at AUS and other airports across the country. Arriving & departing passengers can expect delays this morning & through the day.
— Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) (@AUStinAirport) January 11, 2023
✈️ Please stay in contact with your airline & check your flight status before heading to AUS.
In an earlier advisory on its website, the FAA said its NOTAM system had "failed", although NOTAMs issued before the outage were still viewable.
A NOTAM is a notice containing information essential to personnel concerned with flight operations, but not known far enough in advance to be publicized by other means.
Information can go up to 200 pages for long-haul international flights and may include items such as runway closures, bird hazard warnings and construction obstacles.
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