FAA Computer Outage Results in Wide-Spread Domestic Delays

Update Wednesday, Jan. 11 at 10:10 a.m. ET _______________________

The Notice to Air Missions system, which sends out real-time
flights hazards and restrictions to all commercial airline pilots, suffered
a nationwide outage earlier today.

The U.S. Travel Association president and CEO Geoff Freeman commented
on the FAA outage this morning:

“Today’s FAA catastrophic system failure is a clear
sign that American’s transportation network desperately needs significant
updates,” Freeman said in a statement. “Americans deserve an
end-to-end travel experience that is seamless and secure. And our nation’s
economy depends on a best-in-class air travel system. We call on federal
policymakers to modernize our vital air travel infrastructure to ensure our
systems are able to meet demand safely and efficiently.”

As of 10:10 a.m., there were 5,417 flight delays within,
into or out of the United States, and 907 cancellations, according to Flight
Aware. Southwest of its scheduled flights had 328 cancellations (8 percent) and
1,664 delays (43 percent). American had 172 cancellations (5 percent) and 772
delays (26 percent). Delta had 37 cancellations (1 percent) and 690 delays (24
percent). United had 29 cancellations (1 percent) and 512 delays (22 percent).

Update Wednesday, Jan. 11 at 9:23 a.m. ET _______________________

The Notice to Air Missions system, which sends out real-time
flights hazards and restrictions to all commercial airline pilots, suffered
a nationwide outage earlier today, according to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.

While some functions have begun to come back online, the FAA was still working to fully restore the system. The
agency had ordered airlines to “pause all domestic departures” until
9 a.m. Eastern Time to allow the FAA to “validate the integrity of flight
and safety information.” But by 8:15 a.m., departures had resumed at
Newark Liberty International Airport and Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International
Airport, according to the FAA.

By 8:50 a.m., normal air traffic operations had begun to
gradually resume across the United States, according to the FAA, which has
lifted the ground stop.

The agency said it will continue to look into the cause of
the initial problem.

The number of flights delayed so far today by 9 a.m. was
4,013 according to aviation tracker Flight Aware. Southwest Airlines had 1,677
or 44 percent of its schedule delayed, American Airlines had 522 or 17 percent
of its schedule delayed, Delta Airlines had 466 or 16 percent delayed, and  United Airlines had 313 or 13 percent of its
flights delayed, according to the tracker. 

Airlines are cautioning that delays and cancellations could continue to ripple through their schedules. United has issued a statement that it is working to restore its schedule and has activated a travel waiver for any customers who need to change their
plans, including offering refunds for customers who no longer want to
travel. 

Original post Wednesday, Jan. 11 at 8:43 a.m. ET______________________

The Notice to Air Missions system, which sends out real-time
flights hazards and restrictions to all commercial airline pilots, has suffered
a nationwide outage, according to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on
Wednesday. 

While some functions have begun to come back online,
according to the FAA, it was still working to fully restore the system. The
agency has ordered airlines to “pause all domestic departures” until
9 a.m. Eastern Time to allow the FAA to “validate the integrity of flight
and safety information.” 

United Airlines sent a notice that it has temporarily
delayed all domestic flights.