Belgium closes airspace for 2 hours over technical glitch

BRUSSELS -- Belgium's airspace was closed for landings and departures for about two hours on Thursday afternoon. A technical glitch in the data system of the air safety control center caused the closure.

Belgocontrol spokesman Dominque Dehaene said the control center had to execute a "clear sky" operation until the issue was fixed.

He couldn't immediately provide details of the technical difficulties.

Dehaene said it was "a very specific problem" that created a risk that some information on flights might not be correct. Flights resumed by 6 p.m. (12 p.m. EDT).

About 15 flights were canceled and many more delayed at Brussels international airport, which handles around 650 flights a day. Charleroi airport handles about 140.

By comparison, Heathrow, which is Europe's busiest airport, operates 1,299 daily flights.

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