<p>Airports across the United States slowly descended into chaos Friday morning after a worldwide tech outage disrupted flights and stranded passengers.</p>.<p>More than 1,400 flights across the country were delayed and more than 350 others were canceled, according to FlightAware, a company that tracks flight information. Airports in the New York City and Chicago regions appeared to be hardest hit.</p>.<p>As the sun rose over the East Coast, at least five airlines -- Allegiant Air, American, Delta, Spirit and United -- had issued ground stops, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.</p>.<p>"The FAA is closely monitoring a technical issue impacting IT systems at U.S. airlines," the agency said in a statement. "Several airlines have requested FAA assistance with ground stops for their fleets until the issue is resolved."</p>.<p>It was unclear how long the ground stops were expected to last, but as of midmorning, operations were slowly resuming.</p>.<p>American Airlines said in a statement on social media that it had safely reestablished its operation.</p>.<p>Delta issued a similar a statement saying that some flights had resumed. United Airlines warned customers that delays may linger throughout the day.</p>.Microsoft Outage Highlights | Several Times Square billboards went dark after outage; ‘handful’ still remain offline.<p>At Denver International Airport, large screens typically used to detail arrivals and departures were flashing blue error messages, leaving some passengers confused and uneasy about their travel plans.</p>.<p>Frank Tingley, 42, a data analyst, was among thousands of travelers stranded at that airport.</p>.<p>"I'm not good, actually," he said, adding that he first noticed an issue when airport staff had difficulties scanning tickets for his flight to Boston Logan International Airport.</p>.<p>Tingley said he was initially allowed to board the plane but after further complications and delays, passengers deplaned.</p>.<p>"The general mood is that people are finding a quiet corner and just trying to hunker down," he said.</p>.<p>At LaGuardia Airport in New York City, would-be travelers stuck with canceled flights sat on benches and the floor working their phones to see if they could book other flights.</p>.<p>Brazilian teens traveling together gathered next to a church group from Alabama as well as vacationers, who thought they were bound for the Caribbean. "I've never been affected by something like this before," said Chris Ocejo, 29, a personal trainer from New York, who arrived with his mother, Patty, for an American Airlines flight to the Bahamas.</p>.<p>"Then they told us something had gone wrong with their cybersecurity and they were sending a lot of people home because the flights are all canceled," Ocejo said. "We got on a waiting list to get another flight but we may just go home."</p>.<p>Videos of Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina showed extremely long lines with some travelers calling the airport a "zoo" and "madhouse."</p>
<p>Airports across the United States slowly descended into chaos Friday morning after a worldwide tech outage disrupted flights and stranded passengers.</p>.<p>More than 1,400 flights across the country were delayed and more than 350 others were canceled, according to FlightAware, a company that tracks flight information. Airports in the New York City and Chicago regions appeared to be hardest hit.</p>.<p>As the sun rose over the East Coast, at least five airlines -- Allegiant Air, American, Delta, Spirit and United -- had issued ground stops, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.</p>.<p>"The FAA is closely monitoring a technical issue impacting IT systems at U.S. airlines," the agency said in a statement. "Several airlines have requested FAA assistance with ground stops for their fleets until the issue is resolved."</p>.<p>It was unclear how long the ground stops were expected to last, but as of midmorning, operations were slowly resuming.</p>.<p>American Airlines said in a statement on social media that it had safely reestablished its operation.</p>.<p>Delta issued a similar a statement saying that some flights had resumed. United Airlines warned customers that delays may linger throughout the day.</p>.Microsoft Outage Highlights | Several Times Square billboards went dark after outage; ‘handful’ still remain offline.<p>At Denver International Airport, large screens typically used to detail arrivals and departures were flashing blue error messages, leaving some passengers confused and uneasy about their travel plans.</p>.<p>Frank Tingley, 42, a data analyst, was among thousands of travelers stranded at that airport.</p>.<p>"I'm not good, actually," he said, adding that he first noticed an issue when airport staff had difficulties scanning tickets for his flight to Boston Logan International Airport.</p>.<p>Tingley said he was initially allowed to board the plane but after further complications and delays, passengers deplaned.</p>.<p>"The general mood is that people are finding a quiet corner and just trying to hunker down," he said.</p>.<p>At LaGuardia Airport in New York City, would-be travelers stuck with canceled flights sat on benches and the floor working their phones to see if they could book other flights.</p>.<p>Brazilian teens traveling together gathered next to a church group from Alabama as well as vacationers, who thought they were bound for the Caribbean. "I've never been affected by something like this before," said Chris Ocejo, 29, a personal trainer from New York, who arrived with his mother, Patty, for an American Airlines flight to the Bahamas.</p>.<p>"Then they told us something had gone wrong with their cybersecurity and they were sending a lot of people home because the flights are all canceled," Ocejo said. "We got on a waiting list to get another flight but we may just go home."</p>.<p>Videos of Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina showed extremely long lines with some travelers calling the airport a "zoo" and "madhouse."</p>