Thousands of flights across the US were cancelled or delayed after a system that offers safety information to pilots failed. The American government has launched an investigation into the breakdown, which grounded some planes for hours.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said preliminary indications “traced the outage to a damaged database file”. The agency said it would take steps to avoid another similar disruption.
The breakdown showed how much American air travel depends on the computer system that generates alerts called NOTAMs — or Notice to Air Missions. Before a plane takes off, pilots and airline dispatchers must review the notices, which include details about bad weather, runway closures or other temporary factors that could affect the flight. The system was once telephone-based but moved online years ago.
