FAA halts all US flights after telecom outage hits air traffic control

Nationwide ground stop ordered

The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered every aircraft operator in the United States to stop departures, according to TechRadar. The order, issued around 4:30PM ET on 13 November 2026, is the first nationwide ground stop the agency has called in 25 years.

An alert sent to pilots, which ABC News obtained, told operators that all airports were ground stopped by order of the Federal Aviation Command Center, citing extraordinary circumstances and safety. The notice did not explain the technical cause.

A ground stop means no planes are cleared for take-off. Aircraft already in the air are being allowed to land, and TechRadar reports that many flights appear to have been rerouted to their nearest airports.

What officials say caused the disruption

US officials describe the problem as a telecommunications outage that has affected Air Traffic Control Centers across the country. The systems that let controllers talk to pilots and hand flights between centres are not working at full capacity.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters the grounding or its cause is not a threat to the United States. He said controllers and pilots can still communicate at certain levels, but that some communication systems are overwhelmed.

Mullin said landings are being managed on a case-by-case basis. He did not specify which technology failed.

Cyberattack not ruled out

Officials say there is no indication the outage was a deliberate attack, but they have not excluded one. Mullin said investigators must assume a cyberattack is possible while they establish the cause, because such attacks are common, though nothing is known yet.

Asked whether the outage was linked to a large Microsoft Outlook outage the previous day, Mullin said he saw no reason to connect the two events.

The FAA had announced, one day earlier, that its AI-backed SMART system for managing airspace routing would reach more airports. TechRadar notes that rollout began in September, so any connection to the outage would be speculation.

How the skies and airlines responded

TechRadar tracked US airspace on Flightradar24 for more than an hour. The tracking service showed a normal flight day turn into a visually chaotic picture, with aircraft that had taken off apparently turning back towards nearby airports.

Airline responses have varied. Delta has placed a banner on its website advising passengers to check its app for flight status. The websites of JetBlue and American Airlines made no mention of the grounding at the time of reporting.

Some aviation commentators suggest a mundane explanation. Scott Manley, a pilot and science presenter, wrote on X that the outage may be limiting the ability of en-route centres to pass flight information to each other as aircraft are handed from one controller to the next.

What happens next

The cause of the outage remains under investigation, and officials have not given a timeline for restoring full communications. TechRadar reports that untangling the disruption could take a day or more.

Travellers should expect delays and cancellations while the ground stop remains in force. Passengers are advised to check their airline's app or website for the latest flight status, as Delta has recommended.

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy had not issued a public statement at the time of reporting. This article will be updated as more confirmed details emerge.