This is a developing story and will be updated.
UPDATE 5:08 p.m. EST: DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated in a press briefing that “there is no indication that this was a nefarious attack…Everybody is safe. No reason to be concerned about your loved ones…This is not a 9/11—this is a communication outage.”
The US Federal Aviation Administration issued a national ground stop of all departing flights on Friday “due to extraordinary circumstance and reasons for safety” after the agency earlier reported serious air traffic control communications issues.
The announcement means flights in the air may land, but flights on the ground cannot take off.
Shortly before the announcement, the FAA halted traffic in Chicago due to air traffic control communications issues. The agency said, “All departing traffic should remain groundstopped until further notice.” The FAA said international flights will be managed on a case-by-case basis.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said a communications issue is affecting the 22 regional air traffic control centers that direct planes en route between airports nationwide. He said FAA technicians are investigating. This is the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023, when a key FAA computer system malfunctioned and the FAA paused all domestic departures for less than two hours. Before that, the last time had been after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
The government has been working to overhaul the outdated technology that air traffic controllers rely on since Congress approved $12.5 billion for the project last year. Miles of old copper wires have been replaced with fiber optic lines, and old radio systems are gradually being replaced at airports across the country.
