A big tech glitch threw US air travel into chaos on Friday, grounding flights nationwide for over 4 hours.
The issue came from a breakdown in the network connecting air traffic control centers, leading to massive delays and flight diversions.
While planes were allowed back in the air later that day, airlines are still working to get schedules back on track.
Copper to fiber-optic switch disrupted communications
Turns out, outdated equipment was to blame: things went wrong as systems switched from old copper wires to fiber-optic cables right when there was a surge in network activity.
This disrupted key communications and radar, so flights had to be paused for safety.
Thankfully, all airborne planes landed safely.
Sean Duffy urges more aviation funding
This mess has put a spotlight on how much US air traffic systems need an upgrade.
There's already $12.5 billion set aside by Congress for improvements, but Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says even more investment is needed to ensure aviation safety and prevent this from happening again.