A system outage at the Minneapolis air traffic control facility affected radar and air traffic control systems across 330,000 square miles today, August 20, 2026. This major FAA facility handles air traffic over a large region including Minnesota and nine other Midwest states.
The states affected by the outage include Minnesota, Michigan, Kansas, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. Flights heading into and departing these states experienced disruptions.
Flights were diverted or held on the ground at multiple airports. At Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport (MSP), delays averaged 90 minutes on Thursday evening. Delays continued into the evening at
airports throughout the Midwest region.
The Minneapolis air traffic control facility manages a large segment of the Midwest’s airspace. The outage involved radar and ATC systems. These systems were restored later in the day, but disruptions remained at several airports after restoration.
The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the outage at the Minneapolis air traffic control facility and stated that although systems are back online, delays persist at airports across the affected states including Michigan, Kansas, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.
