A nationwide US flight ground stop that grounded thousands of aircraft was triggered by a technical failure during a telecommunications upgrade, US Transport Secretary Sean Duffy said on Friday.
Duffy told reporters that the disruption stemmed from a router being worked on by contractor L3Harris. The device began flooding other air traffic control systems, creating communication failures with planes and forcing the government to shut down airspace for safety reasons.
The incident marks the longest nationwide suspension of flights since the September 11, 2001 attacks. The shutdown began at 15:54 EST on Friday and lasted more than four hours, though the ripple effects are expected to last for days.
Investigation into incompetence or faulty equipment
Duffy stated that the government is currently investigating whether the failure was due to “incompetence” by the company performing the upgrades or defective equipment. He emphasized that US officials do not believe the incident resulted from a cyber-attack, although an investigation is ongoing.
Bryan Bedford, who heads the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), reinforced this assessment during the same news conference. He said there is “zero evidence of anything nefarious, and zero evidence of anything AI related” surrounding the technical failure.
L3Harris, a technology provider, said in a statement that it had completed over 70% of the work to modernize communications infrastructure before the shutdown occurred. The company said it is supporting the FAA in its investigation to understand the conditions that led to the ground stop.
Impact on travelers and infrastructure concerns
The disruption left more than 3,500 flights cancelled and over 2,000 delayed in the US by Saturday, according to tracking website Flight Aware. Some passengers were stuck on planes on the tarmac, unable to take off or return to gates. In some cases, international flights were allowed to depart US airports to clear space.
Duffy warned that a similar issue could arise again unless the US Congress approves upgrades to air traffic control infrastructure. He described the current system as “incredibly old,” noting that the copper wire being replaced was being discontinued.
US President Donald Trump has requested $30.1 billion for these upgrades. Both chambers of Congress are currently controlled by the Republican Party.
Former TSA Administrator John Pistole told the BBC that the system’s ability to restart in four-and-a-half hours showed resilience. However, he questioned whether the system could prevent a recurrence, asking, “what’s to say it’s not going to happen tomorrow?”
Source: BBC
