The United States has ordered a nationwide ground stop, halting departing flights at airports across the country on November 13 following a major air traffic control communications failure. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued the order citing safety concerns and extraordinary circumstances.
According to the FAA’s Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC), all US airports were instructed to suspend departing traffic until further notice. The disruption reportedly affected communications across all 22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers, which coordinate aircraft movements between airports and across large sections of US airspace. Inbound international flights were to be handled on a case-by-case basis.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that FAA technicians were investigating the issue and working to identify the cause. Aircraft already in the air were allowed to continue to their destinations and land, while departing flights were held on the ground. The disruption raised concerns over widespread delays, cancellations and missed connections.
The incident marks an exceptionally rare event in US aviation history. The previous nationwide FAA ground stop occurred on January 11, 2023, following a technical failure involving the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system. Before that, US civilian airspace was shut down following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The FAA’s initial advisory listed the ground stop period from 20:53 UTC on November 13 until 04:00 UTC on November 14, with further updates dependent on the restoration of normal operations.