FAA grounds flights across US following nationwide air traffic system outage

Mangalore Today News Network

Washington, Nov 14, 2026: Flights across the United States were temporarily grounded on Friday, November 13, following a telecommunications outage, disrupting domestic and international air travel.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the nationwide ground stop, citing a "temporary telecommunications outage". It said flights had been grounded as a precautionary measure while technicians investigated the issue.

The disruption came just three days after the FAA expanded its Strategic Management of Airspace, Routes and Trajectories (SMART) system across all 22 air traffic regions in the country.

The artificial intelligence-driven system is designed to analyse weather conditions, flight paths, air traffic flow and air traffic controller staffing levels to help reduce flight delays and cancellations. It was initially tested in the Washington, DC, airspace in September before its nationwide rollout on November 10.

Nationwide flight groundings are rare in the US. The last major shutdown occurred on January 11, 2023, when the FAA halted flights for approximately 90 minutes following an outage in its Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system. The system provides pilots and airline operators with information about potential safety hazards. Flights were also grounded across the country following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The FAA Telecommunications Infrastructure is managed by L3Harris, an aerospace and defence company that provides services to federal government agencies. The company had not immediately responded to requests for comment.

In a brief statement, the FAA said its technicians were investigating the outage and that further updates would be provided.

Air traffic controller and aerospace policy expert Ruth Stilwell suggested that a software-related issue could have triggered the disruption, possibly involving the Voice Switching and Control System, which handles communications between pilots and air traffic controllers.

CBS News reported that a software update to the private communications system may have triggered a system-wide reboot, resulting in a crash.

Stilwell noted that although software updates are rarely carried out during operational hours, staffing shortages at the FAA could have contributed to the situation.

She said grounding flights was the appropriate safety measure while alternative communication channels were used to contact pilots already in the air.

According to Stilwell, ensuring the safety of aircraft already airborne remained the top priority, while planes on the ground were considered safe.

The FAA said it would provide further updates as the investigation progressed.