A radar blackout at Milan’s Area Control Centre halted all flights at northwest Italy’s busiest airports for nearly two hours on Saturday evening.
The failure affected over 300 flights and caused chaos for thousands of passengers across Lombardy, Piedmont, Aosta Valley, and Liguria.
The problem began just before 9:00 PM local time and stemmed from a malfunction in the radar and communications system of ENAV, Italy’s national flight assistance agency.
As a result, authorities blocked all takeoffs and landings at Malpensa, Linate, Bergamo, Turin, and Genoa airports. Airlines diverted or cancelled dozens of flights during the shutdown.
Passengers stranded amid radar blackout
At Milan Malpensa, stranded travellers faced closed shops, lounges, and a lack of air conditioning.
Passengers on Aegean Airlines flight A3665 said they received no assistance, as the airline has no local staff. That flight was later cleared to depart, but had it not, passengers would have needed to arrange accommodation themselves and seek later compensation under EU rules.
ENAV confirmed the incident disrupted the transmission of radar data, weather forecasts, and technical information between control towers and pilots.
The blackout, described by ENAV as one of the most serious in recent years, exposed vulnerabilities in Italy’s digital air traffic control infrastructure.
Flights slowly resumed after 10:15 PM, but another brief interruption occurred before full system restoration around 11:00 PM.
Delays ripple into Sunday
The disruption triggered a knock-on effect, with delays and cancellations continuing into the early hours of Sunday. Rome’s airport authority urged travellers to avoid flying to or from northern airports unless necessary. Passengers were advised to confirm flight status with their airlines.
The incident has raised concerns over the resilience of air navigation systems and prompted calls for urgent investment in digital infrastructure to prevent future failures.
