WASHINGTON, November 14, 2026 — The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide ground stop for all departing flights on Friday, citing a telecommunications outage affecting air traffic control centers.
Sudden Halt to Air Travel
The unusual alert, issued at 3:54 p.m. ET, brought much of U.S. air traffic to a standstill. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated there was no indication of anything nefarious, attributing the ground stop to a telecommunications outage. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the issue impacted all Air Route Traffic Control Centers.
Travelers Stranded, Flights Delayed
By nightfall, major hubs like Reagan Washington National Airport and Chicago O’Hare International Airport were near capacity, with stranded planes occupying runways. As of 5:45 p.m. ET, over 10,300 flights were delayed and more than 1,300 canceled. Inbound international flights were managed case-by-case, while the approximately 3,100 airborne aircraft at the time of the alert were accounted for and guided to safe landings.
Investigations Underway
FAA technicians and federal agencies are investigating the root cause of the outage. The last nationwide ground stop, in January 2023, was due to a failure in the Notice to Air Missions system. Friday’s incident marks the second-longest such halt in U.S. history, surpassed only by the shutdown following the September 11, 2001, attacks.
3,100 airborne aircraft were safely managed during the outage, according to flight tracking data.
Sources
- Ground stop ordered for all airports nationwide for ‘reasons of safety’
- Ground stop ordered for all airports nationwide for ‘reasons of safety’
- Ground stop ordered by FAA at all airports in America due to a 'communication issue'
- FAA issues nationwide ground stop due to "extraordinary circumstances," White House says no indication of "nefarious act"
- THE LATEST: FAA Orders Nationwide Ground Stop, All U.S. Flights Halted
Photo: MBisanz (CC BY-SA 3.0)
