ATLANTA — The Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday that a corrupted database caused a computer outage, halting all flights within the United States for several hours.
The FAA said there was no evidence of a cyberattack.
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Congress now plans to hold public hearings to speed up the process of replacing the aging system.
Courtney Francisco on Channel 2 I spoke to a weary passenger at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the busiest airport in the world. WSB tonight at 11pm
“They rely so heavily on computers that they are constantly worried that they will not get to their destination safely,” says Stephen McEntire. “In my opinion, the lack of communication from the top is unacceptable.”
The FAA has announced that it will suspend all domestic flights by 7:30 am Wednesday morning. It said a pilot notification system called Notice to Air Mission (NOTAM) had failed.
Almost 12 hours later, the FAA sent a statement blaming a corrupted database file.
Former FAA inspector Paul Herron said NOTAM warns pilots of critical flight problems such as weather and runway closures.
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“The age of the system, perhaps the capacity of the system, is getting a little outdated,” Heron says.
ABC News reports that an engineer made a mistake during routine maintenance. The outlet reports that if NOTAM had been up to date, the mistake would not have caused the nationwide shutdown.
“That’s a big concern for me as a citizen. I want to ensure the best possible security in this country at all costs,” McEntire said.
By 10 p.m. Wednesday, Flight Aware had recorded more than 10,000 flight delays nationwide. At least 871 of them were at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. About 3,000 flights have been canceled, of which at least 62 have landed in Atlanta.
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