The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted its nationwide ground stop on November 14, 2026, more than four hours after halting all departing flights across the United States starting around 4 p.m. on November 13, 2026. The ground stop was triggered by overloaded routers that caused inconsistent information transmissions among air traffic control centers, according to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. The FAA confirmed its communications systems underwent thorough testing before flight operations resumed, ensuring stability and reliability. The ground stop was the longest nationwide halt since 9/11 and only the second issued since then.
Flight disruptions continued into the morning of
November 14, with more than 3,700 U.S. flights canceled and nearly 2,000 delayed by 9:40 a.m. Eastern Time. On November 13, about 9,000 U.S. flight cancellations and over 7,000 delays were reported. Airlines struggled to reposition crews and aircraft amid the backlog while preparing for the Thanksgiving travel surge. The disruption forced many planes to divert to alternate airports, complicating recovery efforts.
Aviation data firm Cirium estimated that approximately 3 million passengers typically fly on a Saturday, which is usually among the lightest flying days. Airlines operated lighter schedules but deployed additional planes and crews on November 14 to accelerate
clearing the backlog of delays and cancellations caused by the ground stop.
Travel disruptions extended to college sports, with the Southeastern Conference (SEC) postponing several football games to Sunday, including the Ole Miss-Sooners matchup. The SEC stated it was in close communication with member institutions to assess disruptions and coordinate responses. Travel for NBA and NHL teams was also affected, prompting schedule adjustments.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy attributed the root cause of the ground stop to overloaded routers and outdated U.S. infrastructure, urging Congress to provide funding for air traffic control upgrades. He encouraged college football teams traveling on charter
flights to coordinate flight times with the FAA for priority scheduling, stating, “I would encourage those football teams to reach out to the FAA to schedule their flight times and make sure they have games going off tomorrow.” The FAA added, “Before clearing flights to resume, we thoroughly tested our systems to confirm they were stable and that operations remain reliable.” The failure was confirmed not to be a cyberattack.
