Greek air traffic controllers endured a tense few hours on Sunday morning, the 4th of January, when communications systems went down for an unknown reason, Reuters reports.
Air traffic controllers in Athens were routinely directing planes to land by radio when they went down, replaced by a screeching sound. It soon became clear that most aircraft in Greek airspace had lost contact. Dozens of incoming flights were also out of contact. Online systems were also down, and even a press release was read out over the phone rather than by email.
The outage lasted for hours and affected most Greek airports, halting travel for thousands of people. Authorities have ruled out a cyberattack, but the cause of the outage is unknown. Officials have acknowledged that if the systems are not upgraded, they could shut down again on their own.
One of the controllers, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters: “Suddenly, communication is lost. You can only hear a high-pitched whistling sound. The thing is, we don’t know what caused it and how it ended. We want to find the cause to make sure once and for all that it doesn’t happen again.”
The controllers managed to find a couple of usable frequencies,
but not enough to establish reliable communication with the pilots. Within half an hour, Greece decided to do something it had never done before – to suspend all traffic in its airspace. Air traffic controllers from across the region were helping. A controller from a neighboring country told Reuters that most communication with Greeks was done by phone because radio communications were down.
The events have renewed calls to revamp Greece’s aviation infrastructure, which unions and experts say is outdated. The country has not received enough funding since the 2009-2018 financial crisis.
The Greek government insisted on the 5th of January that the modernization process had begun and that the systems currently in use were in line with European Union standards. The modernization plan is due to be completed by 2028. The European Commission, however, believes otherwise, and in December it filed a case with the EU Court of Justice over Greece’s failure to implement certain air navigation procedures that would improve safety in low visibility conditions. It is unclear whether the specific procedures were in place on the morning of the 4th of January, but the EC’s decision has led many to wonder whether reforms are overdue.
Panagiotis Psarros, president of the Greek Air Traffic Controllers Association, said the incident had once again exposed the weaknesses of an aging and underfunded air traffic control infrastructure. He stressed that the skills and experience of the staff had saved the situation, but that this could not compensate for systemic shortcomings.
However, experts have pointed out that the problem is not only outdated equipment – there is also a shortage of staff, and this comes at a time when Greece attracts millions of tourists every year.
In September, unions protested against the excessive number of incoming flights, which exceed the permitted number and are causing delays. They have now promised to resume the protests.
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