PHOENIX — Some travelers at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport were trying to make it to a wedding. Others trying to get to a dance competition. For those stuck in Phoenix overnight, even finding a hotel room was a challenge.
The data firm Cirium said cancellations stranded 1.5 million people nationwide. Thousands were affected at Sky Harbor alone.
Just before 10 p.m. Friday, one international flight headed to Paris, France departed Phoenix Sky Harbor. Although domestic flights are allowed to depart again, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says travel will start picking up Saturday.
“We hope we don't miss the wedding,” one traveler said.
“It starts at 5 o’clock today, so we're hoping to be there by tomorrow at least,” another traveler said, trying to get to a dance competition in California.
Some stranded travelers said they couldn’t secure a hotel room for the night.
“Every time we go in the hotel app, it was like all of a sudden they were sold out. They were sold out,” one traveler said.
The disruption also sent five buses carrying the Arizona State University football team back toward Tempe. The team was set to fly to Orlando to face the University of Central Florida. The game was pushed back two hours.
As the ground stop ended after more than four hours, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said it did not stem from a threat to the United States.
“This was a telecommunication outage throughout FAA,” Secretary Mullin said.
Secretary Duffy blamed aging air traffic control technology and overloaded routers.
“What we have is an incredibly old air traffic control system,” Duffy said.
He said more incidents would happen until the system is upgraded and asked Congress to approve $50 billion for air traffic modernization.
An aviation expert Curtis Brunjes, retired 787 Captain and Designated Pilot Examiner, told ABC15 that flying remains safe and urged travelers to check their flight status before heading to the airport.
“The greatest impact will be for those people who haven't yet headed to the airport that are flying in the next 12 hours,” Brunjes said. “They need to really pay attention.”
During the ground stop, ABC15 crews saw six inbound flights land at Sky Harbor. They came from Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, London and Cancún.
“We should have stayed in Mexico!” one traveler said.
For many passengers trying to leave Friday night, the wait continued. JetBlue canceled its remaining Friday flights, except for Europe-bound departures from New York and Boston.
“I was like, ‘Oh my God, what's happening?’” another traveler said. “I just want to go home to my dog, to my family, to my bed.”
JetBlue said it expected additional disruptions, including cancellations, into Saturday. The airline said it was working with the FAA to monitor the situation and that safety was its top priority.
Do you have a concern in your community or a news tip? We want to hear from you!
Connect with us: share@abc15.com
