Christmas Eve flights delayed after American Airlines grounds all US journeys
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A nationwide ground stop has been lifted after American Airlines grounded its flights for around an hour across the US on Christmas Eve amid one of the busiest travel periods of the year.
The Federal Aviation Administration told The Independent that “American Airlines reported a technical issue this morning and requested a nationwide ground stop. The ground stop has now been lifted.”
It is currently unclear what type of technical issue the airline had experienced this morning.
The groundstop was issued at 6.49am ET Tuesday, 24 December before it was cancelled at 7.50am ET, Axios reports.
The airline began boarding flights again at around 8am ET, an airline spokeswoman told CNN.
Before the stop was lifted, American Airlines said in a statement Tuesday morning that “a technical issue is affecting American flights this morning.
“Our teams are working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, and we apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.”
The airline wrote on X in response to one passenger that it was “currently experiencing a technical issue with all American Airlines flights.
“Your safety is our utmost priority, once this is rectified, we’ll have you safely on your way to your destination.
“An estimated timeframe has not been provided, but they’re trying to fix it in the shortest possible time,” it added.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) posted a nationwide groundstop order for all American flights at the request of the airline, an advisory notice shows.
Passengers are taking to social media to air their woes about the delays to their Christmas Eve travel plans due to the temporary halting of American Airlines flights.
One X user wrote that they had been required to deplane at Pittsburgh International Airport, to which the airline responded: “We’re doing our best to get things back on track. Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience this has caused.”
Another passenger wrote: “Heck of way to start Christmas. Hey, American Airlines just tell us whether we should go home or not. Please don’t make us wait in the airport for hours.”
A video posted from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport showed a large crowd waiting in the gate area with an announcer saying that its “system is down” so they could not get the crew on the plane nor board any customers.
The Independent has contacted American Airlines for comment.
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