FAA halts departures nationwide after air traffic control communications outage

The Federal Aviation Administration halted departing flights nationwide Friday after a communications outage disrupted air traffic control operations, triggering widespread travel disruptions as federal officials investigated the cause.

The ground stop began at 2:54 p.m. CST. Planes already airborne were allowed to land, while aircraft awaiting departure were held on the ground, Reuters reported.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the communications problem affected the regional air traffic control centers responsible for directing aircraft between airports. FAA technicians were investigating.

Federal officials had not announced a confirmed time for departures to resume in reports available Friday evening.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was no indication at that point that the disruption resulted from a deliberate attack.

“It’s just a telecommunications outage as of now,” Mullin told reporters, according to ABC News. He said officials were investigating the underlying cause.

The nationwide order followed ground stops at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports because of an equipment outage. Delays subsequently spread to major airports across the country, CBS News reported. Mullin said airborne flights were accounted for and would be brought to the ground safely.

Nearly 7,000 flights nationwide had been delayed or canceled in a Friday afternoon tally from FlightAware cited by Reuters. The tally covered overall flight disruptions and did not establish how many resulted specifically from the communications outage.

The order halted departures rather than closing airport terminals. Inbound international flights were being handled individually, and airlines including United and American warned passengers of disruptions, according to The Associated Press.

The interruption had implications for Northland travelers connecting through larger hubs. Duluth International Airport lists Delta service to Minneapolis-St. Paul and United service to Chicago. A verified count of affected Duluth flights was not available for this report.

Friday’s disruption was the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, when an FAA computer system malfunction interrupted departures. The latest outage occurred as the federal government continued an overhaul of aging air traffic control technology, supported by $12.5 billion Congress approved last year, the AP reported. Officials had not established whether aging equipment caused Friday’s failure.

Travelers should check directly with their airlines for flight-specific delays and cancellations, the FAA advises.

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