All departures from the continental United States were halted for over four hours, beginning at 15:54 EST (19:54 GMT) on Friday.
According to Flight Aware, over 3,500 flights were cancelled and more than 2,000 delayed across the United States on Saturday, with knock-on disruption persisting.
Passengers in some instances were stranded aboard aircraft on the tarmac, unable to depart or return to gates. Meanwhile, select international flights were permitted to leave U.S. airports to alleviate congestion.
Duffy cautioned that a recurrence of such disruptions remains likely unless Congress approves upgrades to air traffic control infrastructure.
President Donald Trump has requested $30.1 billion for the necessary upgrades, with both chambers of Congress currently under Republican control.
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