The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a nationwide ground stop on November 13, 2026, halting all flights across the United States for approximately four hours. The suspension stemmed from communications failures at regional air traffic control centers. US airspace reopened shortly after 1:30am GMT on November 14, 2026, but disruptions were projected to persist for several days.
Flight Cancellations and Delays at Heathrow and Gatwick
London Heathrow Airport registered 31 cancelled flights to and from the US on November 14, 2026, alongside approximately 20 delayed departures. At London Gatwick Airport, three flights scheduled to arrive from Orlando, Florida, were cancelled on the morning of November 14.
British
Airways cancelled flights departing Heathrow to US destinations including Dallas Fort Worth (8:20am), Charlotte (9:55am), Houston (10:00am), and New York City (10:35am) on the morning of November 14. Virgin Atlantic cancelled a flight from Heathrow to New York JFK originally scheduled for the evening of November 13, 2026.
Airline and Regulatory Responses
British Airways acknowledged the delays and cancellations and urged customers to arrive at airports as planned unless otherwise informed. A spokesperson said, “Customers are advised to travel to the airport as planned so we can try to depart our aircraft as quickly as possible. This is entirely outside of our control and
our teams are working hard to minimise any disruption to our customers.”
Virgin Atlantic confirmed awareness of the FAA’s ground stop and advised passengers to check flight status via their website while closely monitoring ongoing impacts.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) warned of continuing disruptions as airlines work to rebook affected passengers and resume normal service. Tim Johnson, CAA consumer director, stated that passengers should confirm flight information prior to traveling.
European and US Authorities Coordinate Airspace Controls
Eurocontrol temporarily suspended all US-bound departures from its 42 member states, including the UK, Ireland, Germany, and France, between 22:00 UTC on November 13 and 05:00 UTC on
November 14, 2026, per the FAA’s request. The Network Manager Operations Centre (NMOC) remained active in tracking the evolving situation.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy attributed the outage to a communications failure at regional air traffic control centers. Duffy said the system reboot resolved the issue but forecasted possible future incidents, stating, “We didn’t think we would have this kind of outage. We did. We were able to review what went wrong, and then reboot the system and go. But, you will have more of these.” He also anticipated flights would be operational ahead of the Thanksgiving travel surge.
US
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin clarified that the cause was new technology overwhelming an existing air traffic system and ruled out any cyberattack or rogue AI involvement. Mullin reassured the public, saying, “There is no reason for the public to be afraid or scared for your loved ones. This isn’t another 9/11… This is a telecommunications outage. Everybody is safe.”
Industry Impact and Passenger Guidance
The FAA ordered a nationwide ground stop “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety,” marking the longest US air traffic shutdown since the 9/11 attacks in 2001 and only the second time such a stoppage occurred, the first
being in January 2023 due to a system error.
American Airlines confirmed the temporary nationwide halt of departures, allowing flights already airborne to continue to destinations. A spokesperson emphasized efforts were underway to restore schedules promptly.
Passengers traveling between the UK and US faced cancellations and delays resulting from the nationwide shutdown. Airlines advised travelers to verify flight status but to travel to airports as planned unless notified otherwise.
The incident caused cascading effects on transatlantic routes, contributing to the cancellation of dozens of flights from London Heathrow and Gatwick on November 14, 2026.
