Ground stop lifted for United Airlines flights
United Airlines grounded all domestic flights for several hours Sunday night because of a computer outage, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
International flights weren’t affected by the ground stop, which the FAA said was issued at the airline’s request.
The ground stop was initially scheduled to end at 8 p.m., but United tweeted at 8:06 p.m. that it was still “working on a resolution.” The ground stop was lifted just after 9 p.m.
UPDATE: The ground stop has been lifted. We’re working to get flights on their way. We apologize for the inconvenience to our customers.
— United (@united) January 23, 2017
U.S. officials said that the Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System was having issues with low bandwidth.
A spokeswoman with Raleigh-Durham International Airport said that everything was operating normally at the airport Sunday night and they had not experienced any issues with flights being grounded or sitting on the tarmac for extended periods of time.
The only delays reported at RDU were weather-related, the spokesperson said.
Many in other cities took to social media to complain about the delays.
#unitedairlines have you tried unplugging the system, and plugging it back in? I'd like to go home now. UA224 EWR - MSY pic.twitter.com/bDHiBxNOge
— Matt Edens (@mgedens) January 23, 2017
@united stuck in chicago, thanks United
— Alan (@bordersessions) January 23, 2017
Flights out of Houston are down due to third party communications error. Sitting in @united plane wondering pic.twitter.com/Ot4i4bQV0Y
— Salaam Bhatti (@salawm) January 23, 2017