US Homeland Security Chief: Flight Grounding Caused by Telecom Failure, Not a Terror Attack

US Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said the suspension of all flights across the United States was caused by a telecommunications network failure at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), not by a terrorist threat. Speaking to reporters, he stressed that the situation is not comparable to the attacks of 11 September 2001. His remarks were carried in a Fox News video.

What the secretary said

Mullin explained that flights were halted for security reasons, but that there had been no prior indications of an attack and that there are currently no signs of a criminal act against the country. Flights arriving from abroad or already in the air will be handled case by case, and the order of landings will be set as aircraft begin to arrive.

He acknowledged that the department is receiving many questions about a possible terrorist act, but rejected that explanation. In his words, the public has no reason to fear for relatives who are flying. The causes are being established. Given how often cyberattacks occur, he said such a possibility should always be kept in mind, but there is no precise information at this point. He also said the halt is unrelated to the recent Microsoft outage.

Background

On 13 November the US suspended departures of all flights, citing extraordinary circumstances and security considerations. The FAA clarified that the stoppage at all airports nationwide was declared because the disruption affected several air traffic control centres along routes at once. Reuters notes this is the second time since the 11 September 2001 attacks that all departures across the United States have been fully halted.