Flights FAA Grounds North Texas

The Federal Aviation Administration stopped all arrival and departure flights from DFW International Airport and Dallas Love Field on Wednesday. The two airports announced the cessation of air traffic on their respective social channels. The closures were affected from 3:00 pm to around 5:30 pm and were partly due to bad weather and the need for sanitation at the FAA’s main operations center outside the Fort Worth region, a spokesman for FAA.

The control center has approximately 380 air traffic controllers and manages high-level air traffic in several states.

Arlene Salac, an FAA spokeswoman, told Observer in an emailed statement that earlier Wednesday an air traffic control employee at Fort Worth Air Control Control Center tested positive for COVID-19. They had been to the Christmas facility for the last time.

The spokesman said that if an affected employee was in the facility seven days or less before taking a positive virus test, the agency’s protocols require a level 3 cleanup of all areas where the employee could have been. Cleaning started around 3:45 pm local time.

Because the cleanup forced employees to temporarily leave the control room, the FAA declared a ground stop, causing delays and cancellations. Other FAA facilities supported the closure and operated traffic around the affected airspace, Salac said. The cleaning was completed around 17:05, allowing the flights to continue.

“The FAA takes the safety of its employees and the flying public very seriously,” the spokesman said. “Throughout this event, pilots have always been in touch with air traffic control employees, either at the Fort Worth Air Traffic Control Center or other air traffic control facilities.”

Late Wednesday night, Flightaware.com reported hundreds of delays and cancellations at and from the two airports.