International
Flights gradually resuming in US after nationwide stoppage
January 11 | By AFP | John Biers, with Becca Milfeld in Washington |
US air authorities ordered an hours-long grounding of flight departures nationwide Wednesday following an outage affecting a key system used by pilots before takeoff.
Near 1400 GMT, the Federal Aviation Administration said that normal operations were resuming gradually as airlines warned of lingering delays.
“Normal air traffic operations are resuming gradually across the US,” the FAA said on Twitter near 1400 GMT. “The ground stop has been lifted. We continue to look into the cause of the initial problem.”
The agency had identified a problem with the Notice to Air Missions system (NOTAM), which provides information to flight crews about hazards, changes to airport facilities and other essential information.
The system is used by pilots before they take off, meaning that there was no risk to flights that had left before the outage, the FAA said.
Airlines and airports had been left scrambling with news of the nationwide pause, as the White House said there was no immediate evidence of a cyberattack.
Near 1430 GMT, a screen at Reagan National Airport was overwhelmingly red with flight delays and just a handful of departures.
“Customers may continue to see some delays and cancellations as we work to restore our schedule,” United Airlines said shortly after the FAA stop order was lifted, adding it would refund customers who no longer wish to travel.
Speaking to reporters, President Joe Biden said that he had been briefed by the transportation secretary and that “aircraft can still land safely, just not take off right now.”
“They don’t know what the cause of it is, they expect in a couple of hours they’ll have a good sense of what caused it and will respond at that time,” Biden said.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg directed “an after-action process to determine root causes and recommend next steps,” he said on Twitter.
Senator Maria Cantwell, the Democratic Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, also plans follow up.
“The number one priority is safety,” Cantwell said. “As the Committee prepares for FAA reauthorization legislation, we will be looking into what caused this outage and how redundancy plays a role in preventing future outages. The public needs a resilient air transportation system.”
Thousands of delayed flights
The NOTAM system is checked by pilots before they fly, the FAA said.
“A Notice to Air Missions alerts pilots about closed runways, equipment outages, and other potential hazards along a flight route or at a location that could affect the flight,” the agency tweeted earlier Wednesday.
The FAA had halted flights until 9:00 am (1400 GMT), but began resuming takeoffs at Newark and Atlanta airports before the nationwide order was lifted due to air traffic congestion.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tweeted that “there is no evidence of a cyberattack at this point.”
“The President directed DOT to conduct a full investigation into the causes. The FAA will provide regular updates,” she said, referring to the Department of Transportation.
There were more than 5,400 flights delayed in the United States by 10:00 am US Eastern time (1500 GMT), flight tracking website Flight Aware data showed.
The halt comes in the wake of a large-scale aviation meltdown in the United States over the Christmas holiday, as a storm brought unseasonably cold temperatures to the majority of the country and caused chaos, with thousands of flights delayed or canceled.
Hard-hit Southwest Airlines canceled more than 15,000 flights over eight days after what it said was a breakdown in its scheduling systems.
International
Argentina detects first local cases of Influenza A (H3N2) Subclade K
Argentina’s National Administration of Laboratories and Health Institutes (ANLIS) “Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán” has confirmed the detection of three cases of influenza A (H3N2) corresponding to subclade K in the country. These are the first locally recorded cases of this variant, which has become predominant in several countries in the Northern Hemisphere in recent months and is associated with higher transmissibility.
The cases were identified through the National Network of Laboratories and Sentinel Units and confirmed by the National Reference Laboratory of INEI-ANLIS using genomic sequencing techniques. According to health authorities, the cases involve two adolescents from the province of Santa Cruz, detected as part of the Ambulatory Monitoring Strategy for Acute Respiratory Infections, and a child who had been hospitalized in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
In all three cases, patients experienced mild illness and recovered without complications. Officials did not specify whether any of the affected individuals had a recent travel history.
The jurisdictions involved have already launched the corresponding epidemiological investigations and are responsible for ensuring timely medical care for the detected cases. According to the latest integrated surveillance report, the circulation of influenza and other respiratory viruses in Argentina remains within expected levels for this time of year.
International
Pentagon confirms Trump pick for SouthCom as U.S. military pressure grows
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has nominated a Marine Corps lieutenant general to lead U.S. Southern Command (SouthCom), the Pentagon announced on Friday, as Trump said he does not rule out the possibility of a war with Venezuela.
If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Marine Corps Lieutenant General Francis L. Donovan would replace an admiral who, according to media reports, criticized recent attacks on vessels allegedly linked to drug trafficking off the Venezuelan coast.
Washington has deployed a significant military presence in both the Caribbean and the Pacific, where it has carried out airstrikes against boats it claims were used by suspected drug traffickers. According to an AFP tally based on official information, the attacks have left more than 100 people dead.
The Venezuelan government has denounced what it describes as a plot to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro and seize the country’s oil resources.
In a statement published Friday on the Pentagon’s website, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced that Trump had nominated Lieutenant General Donovan to serve as commander of U.S. Southern Command.
SouthCom is responsible for U.S. military operations in Central and South America, as well as parts of the Caribbean.
According to the Department of Defense, Donovan currently serves as deputy commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. His appointment is subject to Senate confirmation.
International
Trump moves to reclassify marijuana as less dangerous substance
Former U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous addictive substance, a move aimed at encouraging medical research without immediately opening the door to federal-level decriminalization.
Trump said that “people were begging” him to make the decision, particularly individuals suffering from chronic pain. He stressed, however, that the measure “is not at all a decriminalization” of marijuana for non-medical use.
“I’ve always told my children: don’t use drugs, don’t drink, don’t smoke,” Trump added. He is a well-known teetotaler.
A senior government official described the decision as “common sense” during a briefing with reporters, noting that marijuana and CBD-based products — a compound derived from cannabis known for its relaxing properties — are already widely used in the United States by patients dealing with chronic pain.
Most U.S. states currently allow the use of cannabis for medical purposes, and more than 20 states, along with the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., have also legalized recreational use.
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