Delta initiates ground stop for Detroit Metro Airport flights

This story has been updated with additional information

Delta Air Lines grounded its planes at Detroit Metro Airport early Friday, Dec. 5, blaming the problem on a network outage, which it said it was working to resolve "as quickly as possible."

Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration added that it expected the stop to be lifted by 9 a.m., with a was a medium chance — 30% to 60% — that it could take longer for the ground stop to be lifed.

A ground stop is a temporary air traffic control procedure that requires aircraft to stay on the ground at the airport they are at and is issued when there's a problem, such as bad weather, airport congestion, or, in this case, a glitch in the system.

Other airports — and other airlines at the Romulus airport — were unaffected.

It was unclear exactly when the problems started, but WDIV-TV (Channel 4) reported it was first alerted to the delays at about 5 a.m., when the station received calls from people at the airport.

It was also unclear how many Delta flights were canceled or delayed because of the network outage, but FlightAware.com, a website that tracks outages, was reporting a total of 82 delays and 59 cancellations.

In addition, the Lansing State Journal reported that at least one flight to Lansing Capital Region Airport from Detroit was listed as canceled on the airport's website, which gives updates for specific flights.

Delta, which has a hub at McNamara Terminal, apologized for the invonvienience in a statement and urged customers in at statment to USA TODAY to monitor their flight status via the Fly Delta app and Delta.com.

A statement from the airport confirmed the network outage, which it said was specific to Delta, and added it would provide updates on the airline's ground stop "as they become available."

Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Delta initiates ground stop for flights at DTW