Greece Air Chaos: Technical Glitch Grounds Flights, Strands Thousands

• Hundreds of flights to, from, and within Greece were delayed or cancelled on January 4, 2026, stranding thousands of passengers.
• A technical issue at 8:59 am local time knocked out airspace radio frequencies, crippling air traffic communications due to an unexplained "noise."
• Athens' Eleftherios Venizelos airport was severely affected, and Thessaloniki airport closed entirely, leading to long queues and diversions.
• Flights were diverted to cities like Rome, Budapest, and Tirana; some were ordered to return to origin or cancelled completely.
• Limited services resumed by Sunday afternoon using backup frequencies, but air traffic controllers blamed "antiquated" and "obsolete" systems.

Why It Matters: A technical communication failure grounded Greek flights, causing widespread chaos and highlighting system vulnerabilities.