The key facts

  • 16,000 flights delayed on Friday and Saturday; the largest halt since the September 11, 2001 attacks
  • Duffy cites possible versions: an error or faulty router by contractor L3Harris while replacing copper cables with fiber optics
  • Congress allocated $12.5 billion; Duffy requested $50 billion instead of the previously requested $30 billion

Largest flight halt in a quarter century

An investigation continues in the US into the causes of the largest mass halt of flights in more than 25 years. This is the first nationwide halt of flights since January 2023 and the largest since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Passengers searched for hotels, buses and trains, while others spent the night at airports. International carriers also canceled flights to the US, and the accumulated schedule backlog forced the rescheduling of dozens of college and professional sporting events.

16,000 delayed flights and a promise to restore the schedule

FAA head Bryan Bedford said that a total of 16,000 flights were delayed on Friday and Saturday. According to him, the schedule should return to normal on Sunday: 'the worst is behind us.' He also stated that the FAA 'is working with aviation market participants' and that 'everyone will either be rebooked on a flight or receive a full refund.' Since the halt of flights was ordered by the FAA itself, airlines are not legally required to compensate passengers for canceled flights.

Duffy searches for those responsible: from the previous administration to the contractor

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said no signs of malicious activity have been found, and he successively pointed to various possible culprits: the previous administration, Congress and, finally, possible 'contractor incompetence.' According to his version, the problem could have arisen when workers of the 'old contractor' L3Harris replaced outdated copper cables with fiber optics: either a faulty router was installed, or the update overloaded the system. At a press conference that itself was accompanied by technical glitches, Duffy said: 'We have not yet determined what the malfunction was,' adding that in any case 'our contractor failed to do the job.' He was also asked why such a complex update was carried out on Friday afternoon, during the busiest period, rather than, for example, on Saturday night; he replied that the schedule for such updates would be reviewed. On Friday he admitted: 'We did not think there would be such a failure. It happened.'

Financial side: a $50 billion request and falling shares

Congress has already allocated $12.5 billion for modernizing the outdated infrastructure. The Trump administration previously requested another $30 billion to complete the work, but on Friday Duffy named the figure of $50 billion, stating: 'This is an emergency.' Investors began assessing potential losses for airlines — against the backdrop of high fuel prices due to the Trump administration's war with Iran and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz. At the end of Friday, shares of American, Delta and United fell by 1–2%, while shares of JetBlue and contractor L3Harris fell by 3%.