FAA orders rare nationwide ground stop at all US airports due to ‘extraordinary circumstances’… while White House says ‘we’re not ruling out anything’

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has halted all flights throughout the US due to a major communications issue that has grounded flyers indefinitely. 

The Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) said at 3.54pm ET that the reason for the immediate halting of US flights was: ‘Due to extraordinary circumstances for safety reasons.’

Flight tracking service FlightAware said nearly 7,000 flights were ⁠delayed or cancelled due to the nationwide ground stop. 

While preliminary reports suggest the outage was not caused by a cyberattack, FBI personnel across the country are monitoring the situation, a law enforcement source told CNN.

One possible cause for the massive ground stop reportedly being investigated is a software update gone wrong, leading to the systems outage, according to Bloomberg.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin also said there were no signs of foul play.

‘There was no indication as of yet that this was a nefarious attack against us,’ he said, but added, ‘we’re not ruling out anything at this point.’ 

‘I want to make sure we say this again. There’s no reason for the public to be afraid or scared for your loved ones. This isn’t another 9/11. I just can’t repeat that enough,’ Mullin declared.

The FAA has ordered all departing traffic in the US to remain on the ground until further notice. A notice from federal officials said the ground stop was scheduled to last until at least 11pm.

International flights heading towards the US will be managed on a case-by-case basis until the crisis is over. It is not clear if some flights will have to reroute to destinations outside the US.

In one of their latest announcements, the FAA is giving airlines up to four hours to file flight plans because of the communications failure affecting air traffic control centers. 

US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the ground stop on X at 4.16pm, saying the order was given ‘following a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers.’ 

‘FAA technicians are investigating the issue. We will provide immediate updates as we have them,’ he added.

The last time a nationwide ground stop for departing US flights was issued was on January 11, 2023, after a failure in the FAA’s Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system.

Flights were also grounded and US airspace was closed following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

While federal officials have not said a cyberattack was to blame, Anna Giaritelli from the Washington Examiner claimed she spoke to FAA employees who feared the issue may be related to cyberwarfare committed against the US.

Giaritelli posted on X: ‘FAA employee tells me: “Being that it is affecting a lot of the country, I’d say it’s a major issue with AI-type implications.”‘

Congressman Jake Ellzey of Texas pushed back on speculation that the nation’s airports were under attack, claiming that lawmakers had been informed the issue was the result of ‘equipment failure.’

In a video post on X, Ellzey said: ‘We’ve been informed that this is the result of an equipment failure. Please be mindful of rumors and speculation as the situation develops.’

Air traffic control centers across the US are clearing their airspace as they prepare to enter ‘ATC Zero,’ a rare emergency status that means a facility can no longer safely maintain proper separation between aircraft coming and going from airports.

The status is declared when an air traffic control facility is completely unable to safely provide service due to severe issues like hazardous weather, equipment failure, fires or critical staffing shortages.

A nationwide ATC Zero declaration is extraordinarily rare, having occurred only a handful of times in modern aviation history.

This is a breaking story. More details to follow.