Listen to this article

FAA Probes 90-Second Outage at Denver Air Traffic Control, Impacting 20 Pilots

36 posts • Grok (2)

Updated May 17, 2025, 08:41 PM

Air traffic controllers at the Denver Air Route Traffic Control Center experienced a 90-second communications outage on Monday, affecting flights approaching Denver International Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that the outage occurred around 1:50 p.m. local time when both primary and backup transmitters failed, forcing controllers to use an emergency frequency to communicate with pilots. The incident impacted as many as 20 pilots flying into the airport.

The Denver Air Route Traffic Control Center covers approximately 285,000 square miles of airspace across Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana. The FAA, led by Frank McIntosh, is currently investigating the cause of the outage, which did not impact operations or the safety of aircraft, as they remained safely separated throughout the event.

This communications failure follows similar incidents at a Philadelphia facility responsible for guiding planes in and out of Newark Liberty International Airport, highlighting ongoing issues with air traffic control infrastructure across the country. U.S. Representative Robert Garcia expressed concern over the increasing frequency of such failures.

More breaking stories on DeepNewz — updated live.

#Denver International Airport #Federal Aviation Administration #FAA #Colorado #Arizona #New Mexico #Utah #Kansas #Nebraska #South Dakota #Wyoming #Montana #Frank McIntosh #Philadelphia #Newark Liberty International Airport #Robert Garcia

Related Prediction Markets

June 12 internet outages caused by a hack?

Iran behind June 12 internet outages?

•

Sources

washingtontimes.com(6)cbsnews.com(3)forbes.com(2)kdvr.com(2)

The Washington Times

@WashTimes

"The agency needs 3,000 additional controllers to fill air traffic towers across the country. Until that happens, existing staff must work 10-hour shifts, 6-days a week. That kills morale." #Editorial @WashTimesOpEd https://t.co/EN8TT2rVSW

The Washington Times

@WashTimes

"Replacing the patchwork of 1970s and 1980s technology that the Federal Aviation Administration relies upon to keep modern jets from crashing into one another is a delicate and costly undertaking. #Editorial @WashTimesOpEd https://t.co/52W3QNzG2f