http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/08/26/faa_commu= nication_failure.html?cxntlid=3Dhomepage_tab_newstab Updated: 5:05 p.m. August 26, 2008 Glitch at Georgia FAA center delays flights nationwide By KELLY YAMANOUCHI The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Tuesday, August 26, 2008 Technical problems Tuesday afternoon at the regional air traffic control ce= nter in Hampton, south of Atlanta, have slowed flight processing and caused= delays nationwide, the Federal Aviation Administration said. The Hampton center had a communication link failure in the network about 1:= 30 p.m., according to FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen. =E2=80=9CAs a result, all the flight plans for any instrument flights natio= nwide are having to be processed through a similar facility in Salt Lake Ci= ty,=E2=80=9D Bergen said. =E2=80=9CSo that=E2=80=99s slowing things down.= =E2=80=9D Most commercial flights use instrument flight rules, whereby planes are gui= ded by controllers in communication with pilots. Bergen said there are no issues with controllers=E2=80=99 ability to see pl= anes on radar or communicate with aircraft in flight or on the ground. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is experiencing delays of about 90= minutes for departures, and arriving flights are being held, according to = airport spokesman Herschel Grangent. Delta Air Lines and AirTran Airways, the two largest carriers at Hartsfield= -Jackson, said they are experiencing delays. According to AirTran, it is ta= king up to an hour to get clearances for departures, and passengers should = expect delays this afternoon and evening. Controllers and trainees at the air traffic control center manage high-alti= tude flights for much of the Southeast, including Georgia, Alabama, North C= arolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. The center= =E2=80=99s controllers handle about 3 million flight operations a year. The= center operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In June 2007, a computer failure at the Hampton FAA facility led to flight = delays along the East Coast, but that problem had little impact on Hartsfie= ld-Jackson. In last year=E2=80=99s incident, a computer that processes flig= ht plans failed. It also caused those plans to be rerouted to Salt Lake Cit= y, which became overloaded with the increased volume. =0A=0A=0A <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you wish to unsubscribe from the AIRLINE List, please send an E-mail to: "listserv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx". Within the body of the text, only write the following:"SIGNOFF AIRLINE".