Air travel across the United States was thrown into confusion after aviation authorities grounded flights nationwide over a major communication failure.
The rare shutdown affected airports across the country, leaving passengers stranded and airlines struggling to manage disrupted journeys.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) later lifted the restriction after several hours. However, thousands of flights faced delays and cancellations.
The incident happened on Friday, November 13, 2026. It followed communication problems affecting Air Route Traffic Control Centres across the United States.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the nationwide ground stop in a post on social media.
The FAA said technicians were investigating the problem. It also described the situation as an extraordinary safety concern.
Reports initially suggested that some control centres lost radio frequencies and automated systems used to communicate with pilots.
The situation was described as “ATC Zero”, meaning a facility could not provide air traffic control services.
The disruption affected flight departures, while some aircraft already in the air continued towards safe landings.
Duffy later explained that outdated equipment and overloaded routers caused inconsistent information from radar and communication systems.
“What we have is an incredibly old air traffic control system,” he said.
He added that the system’s old
switches and routers became overloaded with data, forcing officials to stop operations.
Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was no indication of a cyberattack.
“There is no indication, we had no reason to believe, that as of right now, that this was a threat to the United States,” Mullin said.
The FAA eventually reopened US airspace at 8:15 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday.
However, Duffy warned that normal operations would take time to return. Passengers were advised to check with their airlines.
The previous nationwide disruption occurred in January 2023 after a failure involving the FAA’s pilot notification system.
The latest shutdown was widely compared to the September 11, 2001, attacks, when US airspace was closed.
The incident has renewed calls for urgent upgrades to America’s ageing air traffic control system.
