The brief suspension of flights in the United States threatened the travel plans of millions of people during the busy holiday period.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it has canceled the grounding of all American Airlines flights in the United States, after an unspecified “technical issue” briefly grounded flights across the country.
Just before 7 a.m. ET (12:00 GMT) on Tuesday, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered all American Airlines flights to ground U.S. flights at the airline’s request.
“American Airlines reported a technical issue this morning and requested a nationwide ground stop. The ground stop has now been lifted,” Bridget Fry, FAA Assistant Administrator for Communications, said in a statement.
The stoppage, early on Christmas Eve, threatened the travel plans of millions of people across the United States during the busy holiday period.
American Airlines said a “technical issue” affected its flights.
“We are currently experiencing a technical issue on all American Airlines flights. Your safety is our top priority, and once this is corrected, we will get you safely on your way to your destination,” the company said in a post on X.
The airline later said the issue arose from a “supplier technical issue.”
“We sincerely apologize to our customers for the inconvenience this morning,” the statement read. “It’s all hands on deck as our team works hard to get customers where they need to go as quickly as possible.”
We are currently experiencing a technical issue on all American Airlines flights. Your safety is our top priority, and once this is corrected, we will get you safely on your way to your destination.
– American Air (@AmericanAir) December 24, 2024
American operates thousands of flights daily to more than 350 destinations in more than 60 countries.
The decision to stop flying came months after airlines suffered a global technological outage linked to Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform and a software problem with the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike.
Two years ago, Southwest Airlines experienced a systems breakdown over the holidays, canceling 16,900 flights and stranding 2 million passengers.
Ultimately, it was fined $140 million, the largest civil penalty ever for travel disruption.
This year, the TSA expects to screen 40 million holiday travelers through January 2.
Social media was ablaze Tuesday morning as travelers complained that an American Airlines delay could affect their vacations or ruin their visit with family.
“Heck who [a] Way to start Christmas. Hey, @AmericanAir just telling us whether we should fly home or not. “Please don’t make us wait at the airport for hours,” one user wrote on X.
