JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Millions of air travelers across the country are continuing to feel the effects of a nationwide ground stop ordered Friday afternoon, but progress is being made.
The shutdown marks only the second full ground stop of the U.S. national airspace system since Sept. 11, 2001. More than 25,000 flight delays were reported nationwide on Friday as the disruption halted air traffic.
As of 9 p.m. Saturday, Flight Aware reported 36 flight cancellations at Jacksonville International Airport, but JIA Marketing and Public Relations Manager Greg Willis told Action News Jax that number was closer to 57.
At the same time, Flight Aware reported an additional 24 flights were still being delayed.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said at a Press Conference Friday evening that the ground stop was triggered by a major telecommunications failure within the national air traffic control system.
Switches and routers in the aging network became overloaded with data, forcing officials to shut the system down.
During the stoppage, a Federal Aviation Administration official declared, “This is a national emergency.”
The sudden shutdown caused immediate operational disruptions among air traffic control, flight personnel and airport staff.
Gate agents were forced to halt boarding and departures, telling waiting passengers, “We are stopping, and all flights are delayed.”
At JIA, officials reported a total of 83 canceled flights between arrivals and departures on Friday.
Willis said recovering from a full airspace shutdown requires extensive logistical work across multiple organizations.
“When an incident like this occurs, it’s really all about coordination and communication,” Willis said. “If the national airspace system shuts down, it’s going to take a minute to kind of spin it back up.”
Extensive, behind-the-scenes communication was required to keep airport operations moving after the shutdown ended.
“It’s a lot of conference calls. It’s talking to the airlines, finding out once the ground stop is lifted, okay, which airlines are going to be flying?” Willis said.
Staff had to coordinate continuously, asking TSA, “Are you going to remain open, and how late are you gonna remain open?” and finding out which airlines are going to be flying.
Throughout the recovery efforts, airport officials kept displaced passengers at the forefront of their operations.
“That’s our job, right? It’s far more stressful to be a displaced passenger right now,” Willis said. “Who’s just trying to get home or trying to see family.”
Willis encouraged travelers to contact their respective airlines directly to verify flight statuses and advised passengers to “do whatever you can to mitigate your stress.”
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