WASHINGTON – A computer glitch has caused the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to delay all domestic flight departures in the country until at least 9:00 a.m. Wednesday, January 11, 2022. The FAA system that provides pre-flight information to pilots appears to have crashed, affecting flights within the United States.
The pre-flight notices, known as Notice to Air Missions (NOTAMS) provide pilots with information they need before taking flight. When NOTAMS went offline on Wednesday morning, it caused almost immediate flight delays. An early statement from the FAA said “Technicians are currently working to restore the system and there is no estimate for restoration of the service at this time.” As of 6:45 a.m., more than 1,200 domestic flights were listed as delayed.
With delays mounting, the FAA requested all airlines to delay their departures as the technicians work to resolve the issue. An updated statement from the FAA said “The FAA is still working to fully restore the Notice to Air Missions system following an outage. The FAA has ordered airlines to pause all domestic departures until 9 a.m. Eastern Time to allow the agency to validate the integrity of flight and safety information.”
