Flights across Greece began resuming gradually on Sunday after a widespread failure in air traffic radio communications forced authorities to suspend most operations. Thousands of passengers were left stranded as airports across the country experienced severe delays and cancellations.
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The disruption started shortly before 9 a.m. local time, when aviation radio frequencies were overwhelmed by interference. As a precaution, officials temporarily shut Greek airspace to departing and arriving flights to ensure safety.
Aviation authorities said the disturbance was caused by unexplained background interference affecting multiple radio channels. The phenomenon was described as continuous and involuntary, making routine communication between pilots and controllers impossible.
The outage occurred during one of the busiest travel weekends of the holiday season, compounding the impact on travelers. Dozens of domestic and international flights were delayed, while airports operated at minimal capacity for several hours.
Air traffic controllers said they suddenly lost contact with aircraft already in the air, leaving them unable to issue standard instructions. The incident exposed weaknesses in Greece’s aging air traffic control infrastructure, which union representatives said should have been modernized long ago.
By early afternoon, limited services were restored after pilots and controllers switched to backup frequencies. Officials said approximately 45 flights per hour were departing Greek airports by late afternoon, easing congestion and allowing passengers to continue their journeys.
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Transport authorities stressed that flight safety was never compromised during the disruption. However, air traffic controller associations described the scale of the outage as unprecedented, calling for urgent upgrades to central radio and control systems that manage Greece’s vast airspace.