US aviation authority grounds all departing flights, citing communication issues
All departing flights across the US have been grounded after a national halt order was issued by the nation's aviation regulator.
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order → ground → regulator
The Federal Aviation Administration says a communication issue has affected all air route traffic control centres.
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issue → say → centres
- The US Federal Aviation Administration has issued a national ground stop for all departing flights "due to extraordinary circumstance and reasons for safety".
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Administration → issue → safety
- The US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the order was given due to a communication issue affecting all air route traffic control centres.
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order → confirm → centres
- US Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said there was no indication yet of a nefarious act behind the issue.
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Mullin → say → issue
- The halt order is just the second ground stop issued by flight regulators since the September 11 terror attacks in 2001.
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order → issue → 2001
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📽️: Footage shows grounded flights in LA
The Los Angeles International Airport would normally be a hub of activity on a Friday afternoon, but this footage shows a quieter scenario.
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footage → choose → scenario
'I will be demanding answers', US senator says
US Senator Tammy Duckworth, the ranking member in the Senate's aviation subcommittee, has called for a "thorough and complete" investigation into the ground stop.
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Duckworth → demand → stop
"Whatever led to the nationwide ground stop will warrant a thorough and complete investigation," she wrote on X.
"As Aviation Subcommittee Ranking Member, I'll be demanding answers from the FAA.
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I → lead → FAA
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Key Event
📷: What it's like inside US airports right now
This flight shutdown began on Friday afternoon, local time, when many Americans would have been commuting for the weekend.
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Americans → begin → weekend
A reminder that there has been no update as to when the order will be lifted.
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order → lift → ?
Here's what it looks like inside some US airports right now.
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it → look → airports
How long the US's biggest airlines expect disruption to last
American Airlines has told customers disruptions are likely "for the rest of the day", depending on the duration of the nationwide grounding.
"It will be all hands on deck across American to get customers on their way as soon as possible when the FAA lifts this ground stop," a statement reads.
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statement → expect → stop
Another of the country's largest carriers, United Airlines, has also issued its own statement addressing the disruptions.
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Another → issue → disruptions
"United flights that are already airborne will continue," the company says.
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company → continue → ?
"New domestic flights will not depart while the FAA ground stop remains in place.
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stop → depart → place
"United will work with our customers to get them to their destinations once this issue is resolved.
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issue → work → destinations
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Flights can land safely, says Mullin
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin says not all communications are down, and he has stressed that flights in the air right now would be able to land safely.
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flights → land → air
"We are able to communicate at certain levels, but it's overwhelmed some of the systems we have," he said.
"
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he → communicate → systems
We're assured that everybody is safe.
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everybody → assure → ?
"Everybody that's going to be in the air, that's currently on a plane, your loved ones, as I said, we're going to get you on the ground, and we're doing it in a safe manner."
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we → go → manner
The latest from the FAA
The US Federal Aviation Administration says flights have been grounded due to a temporary telecommunications outage.
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flights → say → outage
"Out of an abundance of caution all flights have been halted," the agency said in a statement.
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agency → halt → statement
Every flight has been accounted for and international flights will be handled on a case-by-case basis.
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flights → account → basis
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Flight Radar shows busy airspace
To give you an idea of just how busy the US's airspace is right now, here is a shot of the country from the FlightRadar24 website.
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shot → show → website
The aircraft monitor shows hundreds of flights are still in the air over the country.
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hundreds → show → country
As we've mentioned, the national halt order does not prevent those flights from landing, it will only impact planes still on the ground.
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it → mention → ground
Key Event
'This isn't another 9/11,' Homeland Security Secretary says
US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has briefed reporters at the White House on the national ground stop.
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Mullin → say → stop
He said there was no threat to the public, but the root cause of the problem is not known.
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cause → say → problem
"There's no reason for the public to be afraid or scared for your loved ones," he said.
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he → be → ones
Mullin could not say how long it would take for things to return to normal.
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things → say → ?
"This isn't just going to be resolved and turned around within the hour," he said.
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he → go → hour
He would not rule out a cyber attack, nor problems related to new AI-powered technology being rolled out in air control towers.
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He → rule → towers
US media is reporting that FBI and law enforcement sources do not believe the problem is the result of a cyber attack.
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problem → report → attack
Mr Mullin said there was also no reason to think yesterday's global Microsoft outage was linked to the issue.
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outage → say → issue
What we know so far
The nationwide ground stop came after the FAA first halted traffic in Chicago due to air traffic control issues.
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FAA → know → issues
The following order then stopped "all departing traffic … until further notice".
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order → follow → notice
The regulator says all international flights will be managed on a case-by-case basis.
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flights → say → basis
The order means flights already in the air may land but flights on the ground cannot take off.
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flights → mean → ground
The last one was in January 2023, when domestic departures were paused for less than two hours.
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departures → pause → hours
…and 3 more, not listed.
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