 |
| Everything you need to know about the NOTAM system that has disrupted US flights |
Today the aviation industry in the USA is going through a serious crisis as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported a technical error in its system (NOTAM) which led to the banning of all flights across the United States.
The FAA ordered all US airlines to begin domestic flights on the ground by 9:00 AM EST (1400 GMT), before the agency announced a phased return to normal air service in the US.
According to flight-tracking website FlightAware, the outage has delayed more than 8,200 flights in the United States and abroad and canceled more than 2,600 flights as of 1:30 p.m. ET.
What is NOTAM and how does it affect air travel?
The Air Mission Notification System (NOTAM), used to notify pilots in real time of conditions that could affect the safety of their flight, is separate from the air traffic control (ATC) system that keeps planes aloft. Each other, but the air is another important tool for road safety.
The NOTAM system relies on a specialized language of symbols and words that only experts understand, and the notifications it sends to the pilots may include information about the condition of a particular runway before landing or takeoff, such as: b- the presence of snow or an icing condition for towers near the airport or in the event of an air show Or a military exercise in the near air.
The FAA also operates the National Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. The system uses radar to track all aircraft in their airspace and cockpit radios to guide them to safety. The computers that form the backbone of the ATC system are notoriously outdated and outdated. But when they fail, they usually only affect a region of the United States, not all of the airspace.
Several experts said the problems faced by the aviation industry on Wednesday highlighted the urgent need for a major modernization of aviation management systems.
The NOTAM system was previously telephone-based, with pilots calling a flight service station for information, but it has moved to the Internet, gradually evolving from a manual to the Internet in recent years.
When did the NOTAM breach occur?
The NOTAM system went down at 8:28 p.m. ET Tuesday and the government, per FAA guidance, relied on hotlines to weather the crisis and keep air travel going through the night. But with the sharp increase in air traffic on Wednesday morning, the phone system stopped working.
The Federal Aviation Administration has grounded all flights in the United States, affecting nearly all commercial and cargo flights, while allowing some medical flights.
Military flights were not affected by the disruption. Air Force spokeswoman Anne Stefanik confirmed to The Associated Press that the US Army has its own NOTAM system, separate from the FAA system.
Are NOTAM system failures common?
No, such a system failure (NOTAM) is very rare, because US air traffic has not experienced a crisis like Wednesday's since September 11, 2001.
Some critics have pointed to the significance of the event, such as Tim Campbell, a Minneapolis consultant and American Airlines vice president of flight operations, telling the Associated Press: "There were disruptions to air travel in parts of the United States, but what was Wednesday in America is what happened to the airline industry." It has great historical significance."
Campbell added, “The FAA technology has been a problem for a long time, not just the (NOTAM) system. Many management systems are based on old mainframe computers, which are often reliable, but outdated.”
Pilot and former aviation safety expert John Cox said, "The aviation industry has been talking about updating the system (NOTAM) for years, but they have no idea how old the servers are. It's been provided by the FAA."
He added, "I've been a pilot for 53 years and I've never witnessed a system crash like this, so it's an extraordinary event that will go down in the history books."
The FAA is working to restore its Notice to Air Missions System. We are performing final validation checks and reloading the system now.
— The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) January 11, 2023
Operations across the National Airspace System are affected.
We will provide frequent updates as we make progress.