Overloaded routers and decades-old equipment halted every departure in the country for more than four hours Friday. Now the Trump administration wants up to $50 billion from Congress to rebuild the system.
Nov 14, 2026 · Staff report
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered every departing flight in the United States to stay on the ground for more than four hours Friday after communications problems hit the centers that guide planes across the country, a disruption that stranded travelers from Philadelphia to the Lehigh Valley and will ripple through the weekend.
The FAA issued the ground stop at 3:54 p.m. Eastern and lifted it at 8:15 p.m. It is only the third nationwide ground stop in U.S. history, after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and the January 2023 failure of the FAA’s pilot-alert (NOTAM) system.
What happened
In its first statement, the FAA said it halted flights at all U.S. airports “following communication issues impacting multiple Air Route Traffic Control Centers” — the facilities that handle planes at cruising altitude between airports. The agency’s order cited “extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety.” The trouble first showed up as an “equipment outage” ground stop at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports minutes before the order went nationwide.
At a White House news conference Friday night, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said switches and routers in the air traffic control network became overloaded with data and began giving inconsistent readings. He said there was no total loss of radar or communications, but there were intermittent gaps. Duffy blamed what he called an “incredibly old” system, saying the FAA still relies on old switches, old routers and “1980s little copper lines.”
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there is no evidence of a cyberattack and that the problem “appears this was mechanically driven.” He said officials are examining whether newer technology being installed in the system is incompatible with the older equipment it connects to.
Officials have not pinpointed the exact trigger. “We’re still working on the details of what went wrong today,” Duffy said. CNN reported that some air traffic controllers do not accept Duffy’s explanation, so the cause should be treated as preliminary until the FAA completes its review.
The warning signs were on paper. A Government Accountability Office report in September flagged aging copper cables dating to the 1960s and poorly scheduled system changes that could overwhelm the network, according to Al Jazeera. In September, a cut backup cable and a circuit failure at Philadelphia’s air traffic facility forced ground stops at Philadelphia and New York-area airports.
The toll on travelers
When the stop began, about 3,100 planes were in the air headed for U.S. airports, according to Flightradar24 figures cited by CBS News. Those flights were allowed to land; departures were frozen.
- Flightradar24 counted more than 4,700 cancellations and 10,000 delays Friday, with about 700 Saturday flights canceled before the day began.
- ABC News reported more than 12,500 flights canceled across Friday and Saturday combined.
- At least 827 flights were diverted, most of them back to the airports they left from.
At Philadelphia International Airport, FlightAware showed 208 delays and 229 cancellations as of 11:45 p.m. Friday, CBS Philadelphia reported. Some passengers waited five to six hours for checked bags, and travelers scrambled for hotel rooms and surge-priced rideshares. Flights to Europe resumed from PHL around 6 p.m., before domestic departures.
At Lehigh Valley International Airport, travelers were caught up as well. CBS Philadelphia spoke with an Allentown-area mother and her 2-year-old daughter whose trip to Savannah, Georgia, was halted by the order.
JetBlue and United canceled the rest of their Friday flights. United, Delta and American are offering waivers or rebooking options for affected customers. Duffy warned the recovery would be “slow,” saying it would take time to get back to capacity, but he expects normal operations by Thanksgiving.
What a permanent fix may cost
The price tag depends on who you ask and when, and it has climbed fast.
- $12.5 billion — already approved. Congress approved this in the July 2025 reconciliation law as a down payment on what the administration calls the Brand New Air Traffic Control System. That includes about $9 billion for systems and $3.5 billion for facilities. About $1.9 billion is set aside to upgrade the en route centers at the heart of Friday’s failure.
- $30.1 billion more — requested Thursday. One day before the ground stop, Duffy and budget director Russ Vought sent appropriators a letter asking for $30.1 billion more. The request Duffy first outlined in September would split roughly into $10 billion for replacing control towers, $10 billion for telecommunications and air traffic technology, and $10 billion for airport improvements.
- $50 billion — Duffy’s new figure. At Friday night’s briefing, Duffy called for $50 billion in emergency funding for a “complete overhaul.” Administration officials did not explain how the $50 billion would be spent or whether it replaces or adds to the $30.1 billion request.
Other estimates offer a sense of scale. FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford has put phase one of modernization at $16 billion, with at least $10 billion more needed for phase two. The GAO has estimated phase two systems work alone at about $10.2 billion, not counting buildings.
“This is an emergency,” Duffy told reporters, warning that “you will have more of these” unless Congress pays for the rebuild.
What happens next in Congress
Senate Commerce Committee Republicans called the ground stop a “rare but major disruption” that shows why the control centers need modernizing, noting the last new center was built under President Lyndon Johnson. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the committee’s top Democrat, said the panel will review the technology problems, including how planes communicate on primary and backup frequencies. Cantwell is expected to become chair in January, when Democrats take control of the Senate.
It is not yet clear whether Congress will approve the $30.1 billion request, the larger $50 billion, or something else. Lawmakers are also working on competing aviation safety bills they hope to finish during the lame-duck session.
If you’re flying this weekend
- Check your flight status with your airline before leaving for Lehigh Valley International, Philadelphia International or Newark — residual cancellations are expected through the weekend as planes and crews get back in position.
- If your flight was canceled, you’re generally entitled to a refund if you choose not to travel; check your airline’s waiver for free changes.
- Thanksgiving travel starts in less than two weeks. Officials have said the system remains vulnerable, so build in extra time and keep an eye on alerts.
