Electrical Failure Causes Delays at Brussels Airport

A power failure at a control center in Brussels halted most of the air traffic in and over Belgium yesterday. A sudden power surge had taken out the main air traffic control system and also blew the switches to the emergency generators, according to a report from Associated Press.

The incident caused delays, detours and cancellations of flights. Planes slowly started flying again by mid-afternoon but by that time, thousands of passengers at Brussels airport had been affected.

High-altitude flights over Belgium were unaffected since they are controlled from the continent-wide Eurocontrol agency.