November 13, 2026
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
The FAA grounded all flights nationwide on Friday afternoon. The file photo above shows a Delta Air Lines plane at Philadelphia International Airport.
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a nationwide ground stop Friday afternoon, halting all air travel in the country amid communication issues at "multiple" air traffic control centers, officials said.
The FAA alert said the order was made "due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety" after the problem was discovered Friday afternoon. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said communication issues were affecting all of the nation's 22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers.
"FAA technicians are investigating the issue," Duffy said in a post on X. "We will provide immediate updates as we have them."
The cause of the communication problems is not yet known, but law enforcement officials told CNN preliminary reports indicate the issue does not stem from a cyberattack. The FAA said international flights will be managed on a case-by-case basis as the investigation continues.
A spokesperson for Philadelphia International Airport could not immediately be reached for comment Friday afternoon.
The FAA's air traffic control centers handle all flights that are above 18,000 feet. Pilots already in the air typically have emergency plans to continue their flight paths, ABC News reported.
Nationwide ground stops are rare. This is only the second time the FAA has issued a ground stop since the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001. The most recent instance was in 2023, when the FAA's NOTAM system went down and pilots were unable to obtain critical updates and safety reports.
