Italy restored full air traffic management capacity on 16 October after an overnight failure in the data-transmission network supporting nationwide air traffic control services. ENAV, the country’s civil air-navigation provider, initially reduced the number of aircraft that could be handled in Italian airspace by up to 50%, causing delays and cancellations at airports including Rome Fiumicino, Milan Malpensa and Bergamo. Normal operations resumed progressively after the primary network was restored.
ENAV detected anomalies overnight and introduced traffic-flow restrictions at about 06:00 local time as scheduled traffic increased. Controllers used a secondary satellite network to maintain services while technicians investigated the fault, raising operational capacity to about 75% before restoring it to 100% later in the day.
The failure affected the network carrying data between air-traffic-control systems rather than the control equipment itself. ENAV ruled out malicious activity and worked with external suppliers, including telecommunications provider TIM, to identify and resolve the problem.
By around midday, Cirium had recorded 192 cancellations across Italy, while only about 31% of departures had left on time. Punctuality was approximately 25% at Milan Malpensa and 28% at Rome Fiumicino. Flight schedules were expected to recover progressively, with passengers advised to confirm departure information with their airlines.