Nearly 300 Flights Delayed at Boston Logan After FAA Equipment Outage Shuts Northeast Airspace
Why It MattersThe outage shows how a single regional ATC infrastructure failure can cascade into ground stops and diversions across multiple major airports simultaneously.
Nearly 300 flights were delayed at Boston Logan International Airport on Monday after an air traffic control equipment failure triggered an airspace shutdown across the northeastern United States. As of 2:15 p.m. on September 21, FlightAware recorded 297 delayed flights and 35 cancellations at the airport, with passengers facing delays of up to one hour and 45 minutes. Boston Logan said in a statement that "due to ATC equipment issues across the northeast, flights are being impacted across the country," and advised passengers to check with their airline before heading to the airport.
The FAA issued a ground stop at 10 a.m. at Newark, New Jersey, citing an equipment outage. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters that a primary circuit had failed and that the agency then discovered its backup fiber line had a break caused by a construction accident in New Jersey. The disruption initially affected Newark Liberty and Philadelphia International airports before spreading regionally. Bedford said a new circuit was ready to install and estimated it "should be operational" by 1:30 p.m.
For part of the afternoon, Boston Logan was also placed under a separate ground stop attributed to "airport volume," with the FAA noting that the Boston Air Route Traffic Control Center was taking on extra volume from diverts out of Philadelphia. A ground delay due to low ceilings remained in effect for Boston. At least five aircraft parked on Runway 15R in Boston were international flights destined for other airports, and Bradley Airport in Connecticut was closed to non-scheduled international air carriers, according to the FAA.
