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Ohio State beats Michigan, 21-10
Researcher says she found text on Shroud of Turin
Ohio native takes second place on 'Project Runway'
White House at odds with bishops over abortion
End of an era: Oprah ending show after 25 years
Kin want right to sue after man assumed dead
Sen. Kerry's daughter arrested in LA on DUI
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Police accuse bank robbery suspect of gobbling up note (with dashcam video)
Man found dead in North Akron home is identified
Dad accused of forcing son into field, killing him
NFL star Chris Spielman's wife loses cancer battle
Coventry man killed in crash at I-77 ramp
College student mistaken for deer, shot to death
Man allegedly paid teens to spit in his face
Retired firefighter who broke color barrier among those being honored
Angel Food Ministries helps stretch grocery dollars
Poor machine maintenance blamed for fire at Akron business
Actor Bernsen enjoying ride of derby movie project
Man convicted in hot-car death of father, 85
Blogs:
Pets:
Cat-loving chihuahua suckles seven abandoned kittens
The Heldenfiles:
Friday Night Notebook
Patrick McManamon:
For your Saturday entertainment …
Akron Zips:
Two blowouts, one night
Tribe Matters:
Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster
Cleveland Browns:
Holmgren expresses interest in Browns position
Kent State Sports:
Singletary update
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs at Indiana Pacers – Here’s to LBJ and Free Throws
Buckeye Blogging:
OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad
Varsity Letters:
Bowling season starts today
All Da King's Men:
Headed For Disaster
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Will Health Care Reform Pass?
Akron Law Café:
Federal Judge Declares DOMA Unconstitutional
See Jane Style:
Vintage Chic
Car Chase:
TIME TO GET YOUR COLLECTOR CARS WINTERIZED
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Silverdome Potentially SOLD!
Ohio Travels with Betty:
George is looking for a Thanksgiving buffet in Akron.
Sound Check:
Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall
HRLite House:
Colloquium at University of Akron
Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
By Harry R. Weber
Associated Press
POSTED: 08:47 a.m. EDT, Aug 27, 2008
ATLANTA: Mass flight delays caused by an electronic communication failure at a Federal Aviation Administration facility drew new criticism for an agency that has been scrutinized over air traffic controller staffing levels and inspection standards for its ground-based equipment.
The Northeast was hardest hit by the delays prompted Tuesday by a glitch at a Hampton, Ga., facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the U.S.
As of this morning, the FAA said that the situation around the country had returned to normal, with most delays from the malfunction being cleared up Tuesday night. But spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said the investigation into what caused the problem is still ongoing, and she did not know when it would be completed.
''It usually takes a while to be quite honest,'' she said.
At one point, an FAA Web site that tracks airport status showed delays at some three dozen major airports across the country. The site advised passengers to ''check your departure airport to see if your flight may be affected.''
The FAA said the glitch appeared to have involved a software problem.
Sen. John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, said the episode ''once again highlights the need to reform and repair a broken system.'' His Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama, said ''airline passengers are sick and tired of delays and cancellations.'' And the nonprofit Travel Industry Association called it ''one more example of America's deteriorating air travel system.''
The FAA, for its part, said it would work to make sure the problem doesn't happen again.
Another FAA spokeswoman, Kathleen Bergen in Atlanta, said there were no safety issues and officials were still able to speak to pilots on planes on the ground and in the air.
Spitaliere said that about 650 planes had been delayed as a direct result of the problem, which is roughly the fleet size of American Airlines, the nation's largest carrier. In a 24-hour period the FAA processes more than 300,000 flight plans in the U.S., the agency said.
Bergen said the problem that occurred Tuesday afternoon involved a failure in a communication link that transmits flight plan data from the Georgia facility to a similar facility in Salt Lake City.
As a result, the Salt Lake City facility was having to process those flight plans, causing delays in planes taking off. She said the delays were primarily affecting departing flights. Spitaliere said there were some problems with arriving flights as well.
During an early evening conference call with reporters, Spitaliere said Tuesday's glitch appeared to be a software problem and the situation was returning to normal, though the Hampton facility was not yet processing flight plans again.
She said delays of 30 minutes remained at airports in Chicago while delays of 60 minutes remained in Atlanta, which was also experiencing weather issues.
Bergen said there was an unrelated hardware problem at the Hampton facility on Aug. 21 that resulted in issues processing flight plans. The FAA says on its Web site that a glitch that day involving the Hampton facility delayed the departure of at least 134 flights.
A spokesman for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest airport, did not return a call seeking comment on the impact there from Tuesday's episode. Bergen said officials at the Atlanta airport were entering flight data manually to try to speed things up.
Discount carrier AirTran Airways, which has its hub at the Atlanta airport, said in a statement that because of the suburban FAA center snafu it was at one point taking up to an hour for the FAA to get clearances to the towers for departures Tuesday. Delta Air Lines Inc., which has its main hub in Atlanta, said flights were processing for takeoff, but slowly.
The communication failure caused delays for departures and arrivals at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, according to airport spokeswoman Cheryl Stewart. However, she did not have a number on delays.
The FAA at one point asked that no new flight plans be filed, Stewart said.
Phil Orlandella, a spokesman for Massport, which operates Boston's Logan International Airport, said there were significant delays there, but the situation eased up by Tuesday evening.
The National Airspace Data Interchange Network is a data communications system for air traffic controllers. It's used to distribute flight plans and allows controllers to know when planes are leaving, where they're going and other details.
Allen Kenitzer, a western regional spokesman for the FAA, said the Utah system could handle the extra load while workers tried to get the Atlanta area system back online, but it was expected to slow down air traffic.
''We're not going to let an unsafe condition exist. It's just going to be slower,'' Kenitzer said.
Associated Press writer Samantha Bomkamp in New York contributed to this report.
ATLANTA: Mass flight delays caused by an electronic communication failure at a Federal Aviation Administration facility drew new criticism for an agency that has been scrutinized over air traffic controller staffing levels and inspection standards for its ground-based equipment.
The Northeast was hardest hit by the delays prompted Tuesday by a glitch at a Hampton, Ga., facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the U.S.
As of this morning, the FAA said that the situation around the country had returned to normal, with most delays from the malfunction being cleared up Tuesday night. But spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said the investigation into what caused the problem is still ongoing, and she did not know when it would be completed.
''It usually takes a while to be quite honest,'' she said.
At one point, an FAA Web site that tracks airport status showed delays at some three dozen major airports across the country. The site advised passengers to ''check your departure airport to see if your flight may be affected.''
The FAA said the glitch appeared to have involved a software problem.
Sen. John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, said the episode ''once again highlights the need to reform and repair a broken system.'' His Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama, said ''airline passengers are sick and tired of delays and cancellations.'' And the nonprofit Travel Industry Association called it ''one more example of America's deteriorating air travel system.''
The FAA, for its part, said it would work to make sure the problem doesn't happen again.
Another FAA spokeswoman, Kathleen Bergen in Atlanta, said there were no safety issues and officials were still able to speak to pilots on planes on the ground and in the air.
Spitaliere said that about 650 planes had been delayed as a direct result of the problem, which is roughly the fleet size of American Airlines, the nation's largest carrier. In a 24-hour period the FAA processes more than 300,000 flight plans in the U.S., the agency said.
Bergen said the problem that occurred Tuesday afternoon involved a failure in a communication link that transmits flight plan data from the Georgia facility to a similar facility in Salt Lake City.
As a result, the Salt Lake City facility was having to process those flight plans, causing delays in planes taking off. She said the delays were primarily affecting departing flights. Spitaliere said there were some problems with arriving flights as well.
During an early evening conference call with reporters, Spitaliere said Tuesday's glitch appeared to be a software problem and the situation was returning to normal, though the Hampton facility was not yet processing flight plans again.
She said delays of 30 minutes remained at airports in Chicago while delays of 60 minutes remained in Atlanta, which was also experiencing weather issues.
Bergen said there was an unrelated hardware problem at the Hampton facility on Aug. 21 that resulted in issues processing flight plans. The FAA says on its Web site that a glitch that day involving the Hampton facility delayed the departure of at least 134 flights.
A spokesman for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest airport, did not return a call seeking comment on the impact there from Tuesday's episode. Bergen said officials at the Atlanta airport were entering flight data manually to try to speed things up.
Discount carrier AirTran Airways, which has its hub at the Atlanta airport, said in a statement that because of the suburban FAA center snafu it was at one point taking up to an hour for the FAA to get clearances to the towers for departures Tuesday. Delta Air Lines Inc., which has its main hub in Atlanta, said flights were processing for takeoff, but slowly.
The communication failure caused delays for departures and arrivals at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, according to airport spokeswoman Cheryl Stewart. However, she did not have a number on delays.
The FAA at one point asked that no new flight plans be filed, Stewart said.
Phil Orlandella, a spokesman for Massport, which operates Boston's Logan International Airport, said there were significant delays there, but the situation eased up by Tuesday evening.
The National Airspace Data Interchange Network is a data communications system for air traffic controllers. It's used to distribute flight plans and allows controllers to know when planes are leaving, where they're going and other details.
Allen Kenitzer, a western regional spokesman for the FAA, said the Utah system could handle the extra load while workers tried to get the Atlanta area system back online, but it was expected to slow down air traffic.
''We're not going to let an unsafe condition exist. It's just going to be slower,'' Kenitzer said.
Associated Press writer Samantha Bomkamp in New York contributed to this report.
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