NEW YORK _ The Federal Aviation Authority temporarily suspended flights coming out of New York City's three regional airports Saturday afternoon over concerns of virus exposures to staff, authorities said.
Philadelphia airports were also temporarily closed because of virus-related staffing issues, according to the Associated Press.
The grounding was called after an air traffic controller trainee at the New York Air Route Traffic Control Center in Ronkonkoma, N.Y., tested positive for COVID-19. Operations were shut down and all planes were ordered grounded so the areas where the trainee worked could be cleaned.
The grounding was expected to be lifted shortly, officials said.
"The FAA has initiated traffic management initiatives for sectors closed during the sanitization process," an FAA spokeswoman said in a statement. "Flights will be rerouted as part of a longstanding contingency plan to ensure continued operations."
The grounding was expected to be lifted by 3 p.m. EDT, although other temporary shutdowns could happen in the future, officials said.
