SEATTLE — The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has lifted its ground stop that halted flights at airports across the United States due to unspecified ‘extraordinary circumstances’ and safety.
READ MORE: What is a ground stop?
The ground stop lasted for several hours, snarling air traffic and canceling and delaying flights nationwide.
The cause of the ground stop was not immediately clear, but an FAA spokesperson told CNN there is a communications problem impacting Air Route Traffic Control Centers, which handle flights going across the country.
It’s unclear how long it’ll take for flights to get back on track.
United States Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy says FAA technicians are investigating the issue.
However, he said it appears the issue was due to old technology.
The @FAAnews issued a nationwide ground stop for all U.S. airports following a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers. FAA technicians are investigating the issue. We will provide immediate updates as we have them.
— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) November 13, 2026
The last time there was a nationwide ground stop was in 2023 when a pilot notification system went down.
Before that, the last time a nationwide ground stop was issued was after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York.
No word as to how long this ground stop will last. KIRO 7 News has several reporters who are at the airport:
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