FAA NOTAM system outage linked to corrupt file

LOS ANGELES - Slowly but surely flight schedules are returning to normal at airports across the country including right here at Los Angeles International Airport after the Federal Aviation Administration grounded all flights early Wednesday morning. 

An overnight computer outage meant a critical system for pilots needed to be rebooted. 

"I thought we weren’t going to fly today at all," one passenger said. 

That's what travelers experienced when the FAA computer outage grounded all domestic departures for about 90 minutes. 

Every pilot relies on NOTAM, or "Notices To Air Mission" to navigate and land safely. 

"It's a very antiquated system," former commercial pilot Dan Bubbe said as he explained why a NOTAM failure meant jets couldn't fly.

RELATED: 

• Air travel across US thrown into chaos after computer outage
• LAX passengers endure frustrating aftermath of nationwide outage

"I’m here for business in Los Angeles, so there was a delay that impacts me. I think it’s something we all have to deal with as part of air travel these days," another passenger said. 

Not so, said Geoff Freeman of the U.S. Travel Association. 

The system is long overdue for an upgrade he said, even if air travel is in general safe. 

Bubbe said there have been incremental improvements over the years but not nearly as much as necessary for the demand for travel.             

"At one time, our traffic controllers were using strips of paper. That’s 1950s… that's what they were using," he recalled.

The FAA said in part, "Our preliminary work has traced the outage to a damaged database file. At this time, there's no evidence of a cyberattack."