FAA Ground Stop Disrupts Flights Across Europe, Asia, Mexico and Brazil

A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) order grounding departures at airports across the United States on Friday, Nov. 13, caused disruptions to air travel around the world. The restriction led to cancellations, delays and schedule changes, affecting international routes and connections in Europe, Asia, Mexico and Brazil. The U.S. government said the measure was taken for safety after a telecommunications failure impaired communications systems at regional air traffic control centers.

Air Canada said it would cancel all flights to the United States for the rest of Friday night. The airline also warned that flights between Canada, the Caribbean and South America could be affected if they crossed U.S. airspace. In Mexico, the federal aviation authority ordered commercial flights scheduled to travel to the United States to remain on the ground.

In Brazil, São Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport said aircraft bound for the United States would also stay grounded while the FAA order remained in effect. Operators of the international airports in Guarulhos, Brasília and Galeão issued similar guidance, advising travelers to check directly with their airlines for updates. Brazil’s National Civil Aviation Agency said it was monitoring the situation and urged passengers scheduled to fly to the United States to contact their carriers.

In Europe, the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation, known as Eurocontrol, suspended flights bound for the United States at the FAA’s request. The restriction applied across the organization’s 42 member countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Portugal. It was initially scheduled to remain in place until 2 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14, Brasília time. Flights to the United States from major airports in the Asia-Pacific region were also affected by delays.

FlightAware data reported by the British newspaper The Guardian showed 6,816 flight cancellations and 8,553 delays worldwide on Friday. Those figures cover global disruptions that may or may not have been directly connected to the U.S. grounding. The FAA’s order lasted about four hours. Aviation data company Cirium estimated that roughly 11,000 flights carrying more than 1.5 million passengers were scheduled to depart U.S. airports during the period affected by the measure. Airports among the hardest hit included O’Hare in Chicago, Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta and Dallas/Fort Worth, as well as airports in New York, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Newark, Washington and Seattle.

At about 10 p.m. Brasília time, the FAA lifted the order halting departures. The end of the restriction did not immediately restore normal operations. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the recovery would be gradual and could take time, depending on airport capacity and the availability of pilots and other crew members. He said he expected operations to be back on track by the peak of Thanksgiving travel; the national holiday falls on Nov. 26. Duffy attributed the shutdown to instability at radar centers and in air traffic communications nationwide, and blamed what he described as an extremely outdated air traffic control system. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said officials had found no indication of a cyberattack, but added that they were still examining possibilities and would not rule one out. It was the third nationwide episode of its kind: the previous departure halt occurred in January 2023 after a failure in the pilot notification system. Before that, such a measure had been taken only after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.