FAA declares rare nationwide ground stop on flights, with nearly 10,000 canceled so far

The Federal Aviation Administration has imposed a nationwide ground stop on all U.S. flights on Friday, following issues with air traffic control frequencies that have disrupted communication and forced airlines to halt departures across the country. The FAA's Air Traffic Control System Command Center issued an urgent advisory, instructing all aircraft operators to keep departing traffic grounded until further notice, prioritizing safety concerns.

Inbound international flights were managed on a case-by-case basis. The ground stop emerged due to frequency issues affecting air traffic control, providing a more specific explanation for the extensive shutdown. Earlier advisories had pointed to communication problems impacting multiple air traffic control facilities, initially affecting a significant number of departure facilities.

The nationwide order came into effect at 20:54 UTC Friday, with the initial advisory extended into Saturday morning. The FAA has not yet provided details on the exact technical failure or when regular operations are expected to resume. The disruption is expected to cause widespread flight delays and cancellations, as aircraft and crews are displaced across the airline network.

Even after the ground stop is lifted, restoring normal flight schedules might take a considerable amount of time.