FAA Lifts Nationwide Ground Stop After Communications Failure Disrupts Thousands of Flights Across US

Washington: The Federal Aviation Administration lifted a nationwide ground stop on Friday night, allowing departures to resume after a communications problem at air traffic control centres halted flights across the United States. Airlines will not return to normal immediately, as many planes and crews are out of position.

The agency grounded all flights on Friday afternoon, citing “extraordinary circumstances” linked to communications problems at regional air traffic control centres. Trump administration officials blamed “overloaded” and “outdated” systems. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters at the White House that new technology introduced into the old system had overwhelmed it.

It was the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, when a key FAA computer system failed, and only the second since the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Mullin said there was no sign of a cyberattack. Asked whether he could rule out a hack or a rogue artificial intelligence incident, he said: “There’s nothing completely certain right now. It doesn’t appear that way.” He said there were no “footprints” of an attack, that the failure appeared “mechanically driven” and that officials were still looking for the cause. Investigators will examine whether it is linked to the FAA’s rollout of a new AI system that spots problems and recommends rerouting. That system runs from a single site near Washington, D.C., and only sends recommendations to the control centres. International flights were handled case by case, and some took off Friday evening.

According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, at least 827 flights were diverted by 7:05 p.m. EST. Of these, 670 returned to their departure airports and 157 landed elsewhere. Washington Dulles, Los Angeles International, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky and Nashville were among the airports that took diverted flights. About 11,000 flights carrying more than 1.5 million passengers were scheduled to depart after 4 p.m. EST, raising the prospect of further cancellations.

Cargo flights were also delayed, and FedEx said it was ready to activate contingency plans. U.S. airlines move about 61,000 tons of goods daily, according to Airlines for America.

Congress approved $12.5 billion last year to modernise air traffic control technology, with old copper wires being replaced by fibre optic lines and radio systems gradually upgraded. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has said another $30 billion is needed, and the White House has begun lobbying Congress for it.