United States Announces Nationwide Airport Ground Stop Due to Extraordinary Circumstances

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a nationwide order today halting aircraft departures “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety,” after earlier reporting problems with air traffic control communications.

The FAA instructed all departing aircraft to remain grounded until further notice, explaining that international flights would be handled on a case-by-case basis.

US Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said: “The Federal Aviation Administration’s decision was caused by a communications problem affecting all air traffic control centers,” adding that the agency’s technicians were examining the issue.

This marks only the second nationwide ground stop of all departing flights since the September 11, 2001 attacks. The other occurred in January 2023, when all domestic departures were halted for less than two hours.

Last year, Congress approved $12.5 billion in funding to modernise the agency’s ageing communications system. The White House and the US Department of Transportation also called on Congress to approve an additional $30.1 billion to upgrade ageing airports and the air traffic control system in the United States.

Source: QNA

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