Airlines working to recover after U.S. nationwide ground stop cancels thousands of flights

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Stoppage affected about a quarter of the 45,000 flights in the U.S. each day

Airlines across the U.S. worked to recover from the longest nationwide ground stop in 25 years that canceled more than 2,500 flights Saturday, spread ripple effects around the world, stranded passengers and forced pro and college sports teams to scramble for alternate transportation.

New technology being added to the nation’s air traffic control system overloaded antiquated equipment and caused “intermittent” communications and radar gaps, leading to the flight shutdown of more than four hours, Trump administration officials said.

Airports were slowly returning to normal, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said, with planes taking flight and landing. But the effects could be felt for days, with officials saying the system would likely return to normal in time to handle the Thanksgiving travel rush.

U.S. lifts nationwide ground stop after FAA order triggers widespread flight disruptions

The nationwide stop was the first since January 2023, when another key Federal Aviation Administration computer system that sends notices to pilots malfunctioned, and the second since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Andrew Charlton, an aviation consultant, said the stoppage on Friday had affected about a quarter of the 45,000 flights in the U.S. each day.

“The knock-on effect of that is incredible,” said Charlton, managing director of Aviation Advocacy. “The aircraft doesn’t just fly from A to B and back to B and then stop. It then moves onto C and then over to E and around and around and around. It is, of course, exacerbated if you’re talking about long-haul flights, international flights over the Atlantic or over the Pacific.”

At airports across the U.S., passengers stared at screens showing delays or rushed to find buses or trains to their destinations.

Emily Brown and her 14-year-old daughter waited more than four hours Friday at the Dallas airport for their flight to Columbus, Ohio, before giving up. They were traveling to surprise her daughter’s best friend.

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