Five major airports serving the Washington D.C. metropolitan area experienced temporary flight suspensions Friday evening after air traffic controllers detected a mysterious chemical odor at a regional control facility.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a complete halt to air traffic at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport, Baltimore-Washington International Airport, along with Richmond International Airport and Charlottesville–Albemarle Airport, according to Department of Transportation officials.
The disruption stemmed from the strong chemical odor detected at the Potomac TRACON facility, which serves as the terminal radar approach control center responsible for managing air traffic across these regions, FAA officials explained.
“Controllers were coming back to work and normal flight operations should return to normal soon,” FAA spokeswoman Kristen Alsop stated Friday evening.
Baltimore-Washington International Airport announced on social media platform X that federal authorities had lifted the ground stop affecting their facility, though they cautioned that “some residual flight delays can be expected this evening.”
The disruption prompted New York City Emergency Management to issue warnings about potential travel complications for passengers heading to the nation’s capital Friday night.
“Travelers to the DC area should expect possible ground holds, departure delays, and cancellations, and check directly with your airline before heading to the airport,” the emergency management agency advised through social media.
This marks the second occurrence this month where regional airports faced flight disruptions due to chemical odors at the Potomac facility. The earlier incident, lasting approximately one hour, resulted from a strong smell that investigators determined originated from an electrical circuit, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy reported on social media.
During the previous episode, flight operations returned to normal after fire department personnel verified that air traffic controllers faced no safety risks.
