After a major communications outage disrupted air traffic control operations across the United States on Friday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted its nationwide ground stop.  The aviation disruption affected thousands of flights, leaving travelers stranded at airports. This resulted in massive travel delays.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that on Friday night, US airspace had reopened and a few flights had resumed operations. But he cautioned that regular flight schedules would take time to return to normal.

According to Duffy, the problem with radar communications at the air traffic control center began shortly after 3:30 p.m. E.T., while more than 3,500 aircraft were in the air. That is when the FAA issued the nationwide ground stop.

What reason was given for the disruption

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy blamed the disruption on outdated air traffic control infrastructure that still relies on old switches, routers, and copper communication lines.

He said the system became overloaded, resulting in a massive communication failure. Duffy also called on Congress to provide some extra funding to modernize the air traffic control network.

Congress had approved $12.5 billion for upgrading the technology. However, Sean Duffy requested another $50 billion to speed up the modernization work. On the flip side, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was no immediate sign of a cyberattack. He assured the passengers that there was no reason to fear a national security threat.

A large number of flights were canceled across the United States

The widespread disruption caused major problems for passengers across the country. According to FlightAware, around 9,500 flights were delayed, and approximately 6,600 were canceled within the United States as of 9:30 p.m. E.T. on Friday. An investigation into the incident is underway.

CBS News reported that a private communication network operated by L3Harris Technologies may have caused the system failure. Senator Tammy Duckworth also demanded an answer about the disruption. Share your thoughts about the nationwide ground stop in the comment section below.

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