world

American air traffic paralyzed for hours Friday, November 13

On Friday, November 13, a technical intervention paralyzed American air traffic for several hours, with more than 16,000 flights canceled over two days.

unis, vendredi, interdiction, amérique, français, supervision, milliers, système

Key facts

  • U.S. air traffic was paralyzed for several hours on Friday, November 13, following a technical intervention on the aircraft monitoring system.
  • Thousands of aircraft were grounded and passengers remained stranded at airports. More than 16,000 flights were canceled over two days, according to…
  • The disruption sowed chaos in the country's airports. Thousands of planes stuck on the ground sometimes had to park in the middle of the runway.

U.S. air traffic was paralyzed for several hours on Friday, November 13, following a technical intervention on the aircraft monitoring system.

Thousands of aircraft were grounded and passengers remained stranded at airports. More than 16,000 flights were canceled over two days, according to tallies reported by France Info.

The disruption sowed chaos in the country's airports. Thousands of planes stuck on the ground sometimes had to park in the middle of the runway.

A journalist said:"The aviation administration issued a nationwide ground stop for all flights.".

After 4 hours and 30 minutes, planes were again authorized to take off.

The U.S. government points to a technical intervention on the aircraft monitoring system, which is deemed obsolete.

According to the Guardian, the FAA ordered a nationwide halt to takeoffs on November 13, 2026, for safety reasons, after a communications failure at control centers. The halt lasted about four hours and was lifted around 8:15 p.m. Eastern time.

On Saturday, November 14, a very large number of cancellations were still being recorded. The total exceeds 16,000 flights over the two days.

France Info reached a French national stranded in Detroit since the previous day.

Dig deeper

What is the FAA?

The Federal Aviation Administration is the U.S. federal agency responsible for aviation safety and air traffic control. It is the agency that ordered the nationwide halt to takeoffs.

What is a nationwide ground stop?

It is an emergency measure that bans takeoffs across the country when flight safety can no longer be guaranteed.

Which monitoring system is involved?

It is the infrastructure that allows control centers to track aircraft and communicate with them. The U.S. government considers it outdated.

Why did this outage have such an impact?

Without reliable communications between control centers and aircraft, flights cannot take off safely and pile up on the ground.

Did the resumption of takeoffs end the disruptions?

No: after about four and a half hours, planes were able to take off again, but a very large number of cancellations continued the next day.

Lire en français