From Ndtv · · 1m 30s
US Air Travel Returns to Normal by Sunday
US airlines resume flights after 4-hour air traffic control outage.
In brief
US airlines resume flights after 4-hour air traffic control outage. US air travel returns to normal by Sunday after a 4-hour nationwide grounding caused by outdated air traffic control systems. Originally reported by Ndtv.
US Air Travel Grounding
Airlines cancelled thousands of flights across the US on Saturday as they worked to recover from the longest nationwide ground stop in 25 years.
FAA Administrator Says Normal by Sunday
Bryan Bedford, administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, said the US air travel schedule should be back to normal by the end of Sunday.
Ground Stop Cause
New technology added to the nation's air traffic control system overloaded antiquated equipment causing intermittent communications and radar gaps.
Transportation Secretary's Statement
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said a contractor had been working on replacing old copper wire with new fibre wire, and that work caused the system overload.
Contractor Incompetence Claim
Duffy said the contractor didn't meet the moment, blaming the Transportation Department's struggling systems for the outage.
Impact on Flights
Andrew Charlton, an aviation consultant, said Friday's stoppage affected about a quarter of the 45,000 daily flights in the US.
Passenger Disruption
Emily Brown and her 14-year-old daughter waited more than four hours at the Dallas airport for a flight to Columbus, Ohio before giving up.
Flight Cancellations
FlightAware reported more than 4,100 flights cancelled, while Cirium put the number above 3,200 flights.
The big picture
US air travel returns to normal by Sunday after a 4-hour nationwide grounding caused by outdated air traffic control systems.
