On Friday 13 November 2026, the United States stopped almost every plane from taking off. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered a nationwide ground stop after a communications failure hit air traffic control centres across the country. Flights stayed on the ground for more than four hours, and the disruption carried on into Saturday. Here is what happened, why it happened, and what it means for passengers.
What is a ground stop?
A ground stop is an order that keeps planes on the ground. No aircraft is allowed to take off, but planes already in the air are allowed to keep flying and land safely. Air traffic controllers use a ground stop when they cannot safely manage departing flights. It is one of the strongest steps the FAA can take, and it is used only when safety is at risk. On Friday, more than 4,000 flights were in the air when the order came, and all of them landed safely. Read our full report on the day here: US Flights Grounded Nationwide After FAA System Failure.
What went wrong on Friday?
The trouble began at about 3.36 pm Eastern Time, when air traffic control centres started to see unstable radar and radio systems. Controllers were getting inconsistent data from old network switches and routers. Transport Secretary Sean Duffy said the equipment had become overloaded with data and started to give wrong readings. At 3.54 pm, the FAA issued the nationwide ground stop. It covered all 22 air route traffic control centres, which guide planes across the country, and the facilities that manage planes near airports. The order was lifted at 8.15 pm, after four hours and 21 minutes. By then, more than 4,700 flights had been cancelled on Friday and about 10,000 delayed, according to FlightRadar24 figures. Around 1.5 million passengers were affected, the Associated Press reported. More than 2,500 further flights were cancelled on Saturday as airlines tried to get planes and crews back into place.
Was it a cyberattack?
Officials say there is no sign of one. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters there was no indication that the outage was caused by a threat to the US, and the FBI does not believe a cyberattack or criminal act caused the failure. Duffy said the cause was overloaded switches and routers in the FAA’s old network, but investigators have not yet found what made the equipment overload. The Department of Homeland Security is still looking at all possible causes, including a new AI-powered air traffic system. For now, the official view is that this was a technical failure, not an attack.
Why is the system so old?
This is not the first time the system has failed. Friday’s stop was the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, when a computer fault halted departures for less than two hours. It was only the second nationwide ground stop since the attacks of 11 September 2001. The US air traffic system depends on technology that is decades old in places. A Government Accountability Office report from 2024 found that the FAA had classed 51 of its 138 air traffic control systems as unsustainable, and another 54 as potentially unsustainable. Congress approved $12.5 billion in July 2025 to modernise the network, including its telecoms and radar systems. The FAA aims to finish the first phase of that work by December 2028. Until then, controllers keep working with a mix of new and very old equipment.
What happens next for passengers?
Flights have resumed, but delays can last for days after an event like this. When hundreds of planes are cancelled, aircraft and crews end up in the wrong cities, and airlines need time to move them back. Passengers who were due to fly on Friday or Saturday should check with their airline before going to the airport. Most airlines allow free rebooking when a flight is cancelled by the airline, and some offer refunds. If your flight was cancelled, keep your booking reference and any receipts, as these help with a refund or a claim. The FAA has said flying is safe and the problem is fixed, but it has also warned that it will take time for normal service to return. The longer question is whether Friday’s failure will speed up the plan to replace the ageing system before it fails again.
Sources: Al Jazeera; Reuters; The Indian Express.
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