Shutdown of National Airspace System Was ‘Organized Mayhem’ | Aviation International News

Shutdown of National Airspace System Was ‘Organized Mayhem’

The airspace shutdown on 9/11 was done methodically but quickly, with many calling it "organized mayhem."

By Roger A. Mola

September 25, 2001

At 9:25 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2001, the Department of Transportation, via the FAA, ordered the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS) closed to all civil flights at its 460 controlled and 15,000+ non-tower airports. Canada’s Ministry of Transport followed suit within one hour.

Directed from the Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) at Washington Dulles, the FAA’s 17,500 controllers directed the landing of some 4,300 tracked airborne targets and ordered the diversion to Canada of 120 inbound overseas flights, while the remaining inbound airplanes returned to the countries of origin. Nav Canada landed the diverted traffic and its domestic airborne traffic before unplugging its service.

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