Overview
- The FAA ordered a nationwide ban on departures after a router being worked on for a copper-to-fiber upgrade began overloading air-traffic control communications and disrupting links between controllers and aircraft.
- Transport Secretary Sean Duffy identified the upgrade work as contractor-performed by L3Harris and said investigators are examining whether the fault came from operator error or defective equipment.
- FAA Administrator Brian Bedford said investigators have found no evidence so far of a cyberattack or artificial intelligence involvement in the outage.
- The grounding produced thousands of flight cancellations and was described by officials as the longest stoppage of U.S. air traffic since the September 11, 2001 attacks, and officials warn service interruptions could continue for several days.
- Officials stressed that U.S. air-traffic telecommunications rely on very old copper infrastructure, a vulnerability that made the modernization risky and could prompt changes to how the FAA manages future equipment upgrades and contractor oversight.