Every Flight in the U.S. Grounded for More Than Four Hours as FAA Orders Rare Nationwide Ground Stop Over Air Traffic Communication Failure
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Air travel across the United States came to a sudden halt on Friday, November 13, 2026, when the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide ground stop at every U.S. airport. The FAA said the ground stop followed communication issues impacting multiple Air Route Traffic Control Centers, and that its technicians were investigating.
A widely shared flight-tracking graphic showed thousands of planes still in the sky as departures froze, with the FAA initially offering little explanation beyond safety concerns.
Ground Stop Lasted More Than Four Hours
According to ABC News, the FAA issued the ground stop at 3:54 p.m., pausing all departures across the country, and lifted it at 8:15 p.m. The move thrust the nation’s air travel into chaos, with thousands of canceled flights and stranded travelers.
Thousands of Planes Still in the Air
A flight-tracking image posted at 4:05 p.m. ET showed about 5,100 planes still in the air over the country, with nothing allowed to take off. Official figures were lower: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said more than 3,500 planes were in the air when the ground stop was issued.
The ground stop prevented all flights from taking off from U.S. airports, but flights already in the air were allowed to land. The FAA said every flight had been accounted for and that international flights would be handled on a case-by-case basis.
FAA Cited “Extraordinary Circumstances”
At first, the agency gave few details. The FAA shared an advisory on X citing “extraordinary circumstances” and “reasons of safety” for the ground stop.
What Caused the Shutdown
In a Friday evening press conference, Duffy said the ground stop was issued after outdated air traffic control communications equipment became overloaded with data and went down. He said air traffic control routers became overloaded and started giving inconsistent readings.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said officials are looking into incompatibilities between the older equipment and newer technology being installed, and that there is no evidence the problems were tied to a cyberattack. Officials also said the ground stop did not stem from a threat to the U.S. and was not linked to this week’s Microsoft outage.
One passenger told reporters her pilot said the communications outage started in Kansas City Center, which handles airspace over the middle of the country, and spread nationwide.
Duffy Blames Aging System
Duffy pointed to the country’s “incredibly old air traffic system” and would not rule out the possibility of another outage in the future. He also suggested flying will continue to be less safe unless Congress funds flight system upgrades.
A Rare Move in Aviation History
It marks only the second time since the 9/11 attacks that a nationwide ground stop has been ordered at all airports. The last one came in 2023 during an outage caused by a contractor and lasted about 90 minutes.
Ripple Effects Through the Weekend
The effects are expected to ripple through the weekend, with travelers stranded and airline planes and crews out of position. Some departures from Paris Charles de Gaulle and Frankfurt airports showed as canceled or delayed on Saturday. Multiple college football games scheduled for Saturday, including three featuring top-25 teams, were also affected.
Delta said it expected residual delays and cancellations into the next day after the ground stop was lifted.
Tips for Stranded Travelers
- Check your airline’s app for rebooking options
- Arrive early at airports this weekend
- Ask about hotel or meal vouchers if your flight was canceled
- Consider flexible travel dates where possible
Stay with Bchssreport.com for the latest updates on this story.
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