By Chantal Da Silva —
NBC News
Airlines are struggling this Thursday to put the chaos of travel on Wednesday behind them, after a computer glitch forced the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA, in English) to stop all departures across the country.
As of Thursday morning, 500 flights to or from the US were delayed, according to flight tracking website FlightAware, a paltry number compared to the thousands of flights that were delayed Wednesday after the system that sends pilots the key information they need to fly if a power outage occurs.
A senior Administration official explained that the problem was due to a
damaged file
that affected both the main and backup systems of the FAA's NOTAM (Notice to Air Mission) system.
Authorities are still investigating the issue.
Computer system failure leaves thousands of flights canceled and massive delays in the US.
Jan 11, 202300:32
The FAA indicated in a statement that
"a thorough review continues to determine the root cause"
of the NOTAM system interruption.
“Our preliminary work has traced the outage to a corrupted database file.
At the moment, there is no evidence that it is a cyber attack, ”he added.
Both passengers and carriers expected operations to return to normal, but Capt. Chris Torres, vice president of the Allied Pilots Association, warned that the chaotic situation could
"cause domino effects
. "
“This was up at 9am (Eastern Time).
That does not mean that the problem is over at 9 in the morning.
This is going to cause domino effects,” Torres, whose members fly for American Airlines, told Reuters.
Flight delays and cancellations can be a major inconvenience for US airline customers flying within the country, as long driving distances and a relatively limited passenger rail network make the alternatives exhausting.
The White House orders an investigation into the ruling that delayed some 5,000 flights across the US.
Jan 11, 202302:35
Anyone whose flight has been canceled is entitled to a full refund
, as per Department of Transportation guidelines.
Meanwhile, major national carriers including American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta have said they will waive the fees for travelers who want to rebook flights.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Wednesday night that the FAA will work to further pinpoint the source of the problem and identify measures to prevent it from happening again.
He also echoed the agency by stating that there is no evidence that it was a cyberattack.
“One of the questions that we have to look at right now, and one of the things that I am asking the FAA, is what is the state of the art in this form of message traffic.”
Buttigieg told NBC News, early Wednesday.
“And again, how can there be this level of disruption?” he added.
For his part, President Joe Biden ordered an investigation into the matter after being informed by Buttigieg.