CNN
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A contractor working for the Federal Aviation Administration unintentionally deleted information associated to a key pilot security system, resulting in a nationwide floor cease and hundreds of delayed and canceled flights final week, the FAA mentioned Thursday.
The FAA decided the difficulty with the Discover to Air Missions (NOTAM) system occurred when the contractor was “working to right synchronization between the stay major database and a backup database.”
The NOTAM system sends alerts to pilots to allow them to know of situations that would have an effect on the protection of their flights. It’s separate from the air visitors management system that retains planes a protected distance from one another, but it surely’s one other crucial software for air security. NOTAM messages may embody details about lights being out on a sure runway, or a tower close to an airport not having the required security lights working, or an air present happening within the air house close by.
CNN beforehand reported that the FAA mentioned “personnel who did not comply with procedures” prompted the pc system failure that triggered the delay. Now, the FAA is offering an extra element about final week’s downside with its NOTAM system that grounded air visitors throughout the nation, saying unintentionally deleted information had been guilty.
The NOTAM database failure triggered the FAA to implement the primary nationwide cease of air visitors in additional than 20 years.
The FAA has additionally discovered no proof of a cyber-attack or malicious intent. The company says it has taken steps to make the system extra resilient.
– Pete Muntean, Gregory Wallace and Chris Isidore contributed to this report