How does the US flight stop impact travel? What we know so far

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued the ground stop following a system-wide failure involving Air Route Traffic Control Centres.

In a post on X, Duffy said: “FAA technicians are investigating the issue. We will provide immediate updates as we have them.”

What have the FAA said?

The FAA has attributed the nationwide disruption to “extraordinary circumstances”, but has yet to disclose further details about the incident.

The Department of Homeland Security has also said there is currently no indication that the communications failure was caused by foul play.

At this stage, the exact cause of the failure has not been specified. Further updates are expected as the FAA continues to investigate the communications failure.

When was the last time this happened?

A nationwide ground stop of this scale is an extremely rare occurrence in US aviation history.

It is understood to be only the third time such an order has been issued nationwide. The first occurred following the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, while the second took place in January 2023 after the FAA’s Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system suffered an outage.

What does this mean for travellers?

The ground stop is expected to cause widespread disruption across the US aviation network, with delays and cancellations likely to have knock-on effects throughout the day.

For Australian travellers flying to the United States, airports are monitoring the situation and advising passengers to check directly with their airlines.

• Sydney Airport: All domestic and international flights are operating as normal, with no current impact to airport operations.
• Melbourne Airport: Passengers booked on morning departures are advised to proceed to the airport as planned until further notice.
• Brisbane Airport: American Airlines flight AA008 to Dallas Fort Worth has been delayed by one hour, moving from its scheduled 9.40am departure to 10.40am. The airport has advised passengers to check with their airlines for updates.

Sydney Airport said it was monitoring the situation closely, but there was currently no impact to its operations.

“Passengers travelling to or via the United States should check with their airline for the latest information regarding their flight,” a spokesperson said.

Qantas have advised at this stage there is a limited impact for the airline, but passengers are advised to check for updates through the app – though flight QF4 (New York to Auckland) is expected to be delayed. Most US-bound Qantas flights depart in the afternoon, providing a buffer while the FAA issue is resolved.

Meanwhile, US airlines have warned passengers to expect disruptions.

United Airlines confirmed that flights already airborne would continue to their destinations, but new domestic departures would remain grounded while the FAA order was in place.

“United will work with our customers to get them to their destinations once this issue is resolved,” it said.

American Airlines also confirmed that aircraft already in the air could continue to their destinations, but warned that disruption to its schedule could continue throughout the day, depending on how long the nationwide ground stop remains in place.

With AP

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