The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grounded all flights across the United States on November 13 due to a communication system failure.
According to Yonhap News, the FAA stated, "All aircraft departures have been halted at all airports due to an unusual situation and safety reasons."
It added that all departing flights must remain grounded until further notice, while international flights arriving in the U.S. will be managed on a case-by-case basis.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy explained on social media that FAA technicians are investigating the communication issues affecting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCC).
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mark Wayne Mullin said during a briefing, "So far, there are no signs that this incident is a malicious attack aimed at us; it appears to be a simple communication failure."
The FBI also does not consider the incident a cyber attack or criminal act and is investigating whether the system failure was caused by a software update, Bloomberg reported.
According to flight tracking site CBS cited, approximately 3,100 aircraft were en route to U.S. airports at the time of the FAA's grounding order. Additionally, about 30,000 flights were scheduled to depart from U.S. airports after the grounding began.
As of 5 p.m., there were 8,000 delays and 400 cancellations for flights within the U.S.
Secretary Mullin predicted that it would take time to resolve the communication issues and normalize flight operations.
The last time the FAA implemented a nationwide flight grounding was on January 11, 2023, when contractor employees accidentally deleted files related to the alert system used for communication with pilots, causing delays for thousands of flights.
The last nationwide grounding of flights occurred in 2001 during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
According to Yonhap News, the FAA stated, "All aircraft departures have been halted at all airports due to an unusual situation and safety reasons."
It added that all departing flights must remain grounded until further notice, while international flights arriving in the U.S. will be managed on a case-by-case basis.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy explained on social media that FAA technicians are investigating the communication issues affecting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCC).
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mark Wayne Mullin said during a briefing, "So far, there are no signs that this incident is a malicious attack aimed at us; it appears to be a simple communication failure."
The FBI also does not consider the incident a cyber attack or criminal act and is investigating whether the system failure was caused by a software update, Bloomberg reported.
According to flight tracking site CBS cited, approximately 3,100 aircraft were en route to U.S. airports at the time of the FAA's grounding order. Additionally, about 30,000 flights were scheduled to depart from U.S. airports after the grounding began.
As of 5 p.m., there were 8,000 delays and 400 cancellations for flights within the U.S.
Secretary Mullin predicted that it would take time to resolve the communication issues and normalize flight operations.
The last time the FAA implemented a nationwide flight grounding was on January 11, 2023, when contractor employees accidentally deleted files related to the alert system used for communication with pilots, causing delays for thousands of flights.
The last nationwide grounding of flights occurred in 2001 during the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.