FAA Grounds Flights at All US Airports Over Air Traffic Control Outage
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered a nationwide ground stop at US airports on Friday afternoon, November 13, after communication problems hit its air traffic control centers. A ground stop halts flights at their departure point.
The agency said the order came "due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety." Departing traffic was told to stay on the ground until further notice.
Rare move.
The FAA said the stop followed "communication issues impacting multiple Air Route Traffic Control Centers." These are the facilities that direct aircraft flying between airports. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the problem as affecting all of them.
What the FAA and Duffy said
In a statement, the FAA said its technicians were investigating the issue. It gave no cause and no estimate of when flights would resume.
Duffy posted on X that the FAA had issued a ground stop for all US airports "following a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers." He added that the agency would "provide immediate updates as we have them."
International arrivals
Inbound international flights will be handled case by case, the FAA said. The agency did not say how many flights were affected.
How rare is a nationwide stop
Nationwide ground stops almost never happen. The FAA last halted flights across the country in January 2023, when a pilot alert system failed. Before that, the last nationwide halt followed the September 11, 2001, terror attacks.
The FAA has said its technicians are still working on the communication problem.
