FAA grounds all flights nationwide
The agency claimed a “telecommunications outage” is the cause, not a cyberattack or other national threat.
All flights nationwide were grounded by the Federal Aviation Administration Friday and there is no indication when operations will resume.
In a social media post Friday afternoon, the agency blamed a “temporary telecommunications outage.”
“…out of an abundance of caution all flights have been halted,” the post said. “Every flight has been accounted for and international flights will be handled on a case-by-case basis.”
There has been a temporary telecommunications outage - out of an abundance of caution all flights have been halted. Every flight has been accounted for and international flights will be handled on a case by case basis.
— The FAA ✈️ (@FAANews) November 13, 2026
A further FAA statement to the Watchdog said "technicians are investigating the issue."
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the ground stop was not due to any terroristic threat and also was not linked to the Microsoft outage this week, according to CNN.
At Long Beach Airport, one outbound flight has been canceled so far and 17 others delayed, according to airport spokesperson Darrick Lee.
Lee said LGB was notified of the ground stop at 12:50 p.m. but has not been provided additional information about the cause or how long it’s expected the last.
The FAA has issued a nationwide ground stop. All departing flights at Long Beach Airport are being held until further notice. Arriving flights can still land. For travelers, check directly with your airline for real-time updates. More information will be shared once available. pic.twitter.com/QVvajidFK2
— Long Beach Airport (@LGBAirport) November 13, 2026
A nationwide grounding is exceptionally rare, according to Lee. In fact, there have only been two other instances.
The last time there was a nationwide ground stop was on Jan. 11, 2023, when all domestic flights were halted for nearly two hours after a failure in a pilot-alert system. And, of course, all planes were grounded after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
This is a developing story.
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