Source: NBC News
Author: ERIK ORTIZ and JANET SHAMLIAN

United Airlines grounded flights nationwide Wednesday morning after its computer system suffered a technical glitch, the Federal Aviation Administration said, causing a ripple effect of heavy delays throughout major airports.

"We experienced a network connectivity issue this morning," United confirmed in a statement after 9 a.m. "We are working to resolve this and apologize to our customers for any inconvenience."

The FAA specifically blamed the ground stop on "automation issues."

NBC Connecticut said United passengers without a hard copy of their boarding pass were not being allowed to check in at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, north of Hartford.

Passengers at airports in Washington, D.C., Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Florida also complained of system backups.