COVID-19 Closes FAA Flight-Control Center in Hilliard for the Second Time in 9 Days

The Federal Aviation Administration's flight-control center in Hilliard has been shut down due to positive COVID-19 cases for the second time this month.

Jacksonville International Airport tweeted that the center is temporarily closed, "which may cause extensive delays and/or cancellations."

"Travelers should check with their airlines for the most up-to-date information about their flight," JIA tweeted.

The FAA's website listing of facilities affected by COVID-19 at faa.gov/coronavirus/map confirms staff at the Hilliard facility had tested positive there 12 times since June 22. The latest was Wednesday, saying the facility will be cleaned from 4:20 to 6:30 p.m. It also says normal flight-control operations will continue with aircraft routed around the airspace or handled by other facilities "while cleaning takes place."

The center handles flight control for airlines, private planes and military flights across the Southeast. Its last 70-minute shutdown started just before 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 4 after the FAA confirmed a COVID-19 positive case. The FAA says it has a new contingency plan for every air traffic control facility so it can "quickly address the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency" at any affected center.

The Hilliard domestic air traffic control facility handles communication with pilots in between arrival and departure airports. It handles an average of about 8,600 operations a day, half of it private air carriers, another 30 percent general aviation and the rest military, the FAA said.

The center is responsible for about 160,000 square miles of airspace that covers parts of Alabama, Georgia and Florida, plus North and South Carolina. Its controllers also handle flights over parts of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, plus 20 military and about 225 civilian airports.

Multiple FAA air traffic facilities have been affected in recent months by COVID-related issues, according to the administration. The FAA said it has been able to greatly reduce the amount of time its facilities remain closed for COVID-19-related cleaning, going from six to eight hours down to as little as 90 minutes.

According to the Jacksonville airport's online flight departure and arrival website at flyjacksonville.com/content2015.aspx?id=440, all arrivals and departures were listed as on time on Wednesday afternoon.

Dan Scanlan: (904) 359-4549

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: COVID-19 closes FAA flight-control center in Hilliard for the second time in 9 days

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