Paris-Orly Airport Resumes Normal Operations After Radar System Failure
'The ensemble of actions conducted by the DGAC teams has enabled a return to normal technical operations,' announced the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC) in a statement Monday evening. 'The complete flight program will be assured in the coming days.'
The radar visualization tool used by the control tower experienced difficulties on Sunday, May 18, forcing air traffic controllers to switch to backup systems. This led to drastic reductions in flight capacity.
Around 130 flights were canceled on Sunday, representing 40% of the scheduled 330 rotations. Airlines were ordered to reduce their flight schedule by 15% on Monday as technicians worked to resolve the issue.
'Only some delays linked to traffic disorganization might still be observed,' the DGAC statement cautioned, while thanking airlines and Airports of Paris (ADP) for their cooperation.
The disruption affected thousands of passengers, with many experiencing last-minute cancellations. Some travelers were already seated on planes with seatbelts fastened when they were informed of cancellations, forcing them to disembark and retrieve their luggage, causing inconvenience.
Royal Air Maroc (RAM) had previously announced multiple flight disruptions due to the radar failure. The Moroccan carrier offered affected passengers either free rescheduling within ten days or full refunds.
The airline had warned that disruptions could continue for up to 48 hours, depending on how the technical situation evolved.
Orly Airport, located 10 kilometers south of Paris, handled over 33 million passengers in 2024 – half the traffic of Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, situated about 20 kilometers north of the capital.
The DGAC has apologized to travelers affected by the disruptions. Tags: Morocco France flightsParis-Orly
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