
Nationwide ground stop issued Friday afternoon; flights already airborne permitted to land
The FAA grounded all US flights Friday afternoon due to a communication issue affecting Air Traffic Control Centers, allowing airborne flights to land but blocking new takeoffs; Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said technicians are investigating, and the agency cited extraordinary circumstances and safety reasons.
AI-generated summary
Nationwide ground stops are rare. The FAA halted all air traffic on September 11, 2001. In January 2023, a ground stop was issued after an outage to NOTAM, a critical system the FAA used to distribute real-time data and warnings to pilots.
The Federal Aviation Administration grounded all US flights Friday afternoon, due to "extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety," the agency said in a statement. Flights already in the air will be allowed to land, the agency said, but no new ones are permitted to take off.
In a post on X, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that the ground stop was related to a communication issue affecting Air Traffic Control Centers, and said that agency technicians are investigating.
The FAA has not provided any additional details, and the agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Nationwide ground stops are rare. The FAA halted all air traffic on September 11, 2001. In January of 2023, a ground stop was issued after an outage to a critical system that the FAA used to distribute real-time data and warnings to pilots, known as NOTAM (Notice to Air Mission).
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The FAA will lift the ground stop once technicians resolve the Air Traffic Control communication issue.
Likely · Within hours

The US Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop on all national flights on Friday due to a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers, according to Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have destroyed a US radar system in Bahrain in retaliation for an attack in Sirik. The US military denied the radar destruction, stating it successfully intercepted two Iranian attack drones with no damage reported.

Pakistan's military announced the killing of 74 armed fighters during operations in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. The raids targeted groups including the TTP and BLA, amid ongoing tensions over cross-border security and alleged foreign backing.

Finland's military reported a strike on a Russian warship in the Gulf of Finland, coinciding with Ukrainian drone attacks on the Ust-Luga port. The events occurred during US-brokered negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi.

A Russian drone strike damaged the Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics in Kyiv, injuring three. President Zelenskyy linked defense failures to Starshield satellite service disruptions, while Russia reported a massive drone swarm attack on Volgograd.

Former Labor foreign affairs minister Bob Carr says officials in Canberra and Washington acknowledge the US will never send nuclear submarines to Australia, calling the $368bn Aukus agreement a diplomatic fig leaf. Carr expects American-operated vessels at Australian bases instead, while the Albanese government insists Aukus is proceeding as intended.