US reopens airspace

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted its nationwide flight ban on Friday evening, hours after disruptions that affected thousands of flights across the country. Flight cancellations and delays are expected to continue through the weekend.

Earlier, Davi announced via the social media platform X that the FAA had issued a nationwide flight ban following a “communications problem” that impacted all air traffic control centers responsible for directing aircraft along airways.

A report by CNBC stated that more than 10,000 flights were affected by the disruptions, with the report predicting further cancellations through Saturday.

The nationwide flight ban was the first of its kind since January 2023, when a major FAA computer system malfunctioned, and the second since the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks.

During a Friday evening press conference, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said that while nothing was certain at that stage, there were no indications that a cyberattack was behind the incident.

Davi, who also participated in the press conference, called on Congress to provide $50 billion in emergency funding to comprehensively update the country’s aging air traffic control infrastructure.