Accidental File Deletion Led to NOTAM Crash, FAA Says

The contract personnel's mistake made while synchronizing databases affected an estimated 4,000 flights.

Friday, January 20, 2023 at 01:28 PM ET

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All domestic flights in the U.S. were grounded early January 11 after the FAA's online Notices to Air Missions (NOTAM) safety briefing system crashed. [Credit: Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

The FAA's nationwide ground stop and flight disruptions were caused by a contract worker unintentionally deleting files while synchronizing the NOTAM system databases.
The incident, which impacted over 4,000 flights, was not a cyber-attack or an act of malicious intent, according to the FAA's preliminary investigation.
The necessary repairs to the NOTAM system have been made, and the FAA is continuing its investigation while also taking steps to improve system resilience.

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Last week’s safety notice system meltdown that spurred a nationwide ground stop and thousands of delayed and canceled flights was caused by a contract worker accidentally deleting files, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The FAA also reiterated that their preliminary investigation into the notice to air missions (NOTAM) system crash did not uncover evidence of a cyber-attack or “malicious intent.”