All flights across the United States were grounded on Friday evening following a telecommunications outage that affected air traffic control operations nationwide. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the US federal department overseeing all aspects of civil aviation, issued a nationwide ground stop for all US airports, citing “extraordinary circumstances” and “reasons of safety.”Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that communication problems were affecting all 22 regional air traffic control centers and stated that FAA technicians are investigating the issue. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there was no indication of a malicious attack or threat to the United States, adding that President Donald Trump had been briefed on the situation.The nationwide suspension of US flight departures began at 20:54 GMT on Friday. Before the nationwide order, the FAA had already halted flights at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports due to similar air traffic control communications problems.According to Flightradar24, approximately 4,042 flights were airborne when the ground stop was issued. FlightAware reported that nearly 7,000 flights have been delayed or cancelled as a result of the disruption. The FAA’s initial advisory suggested restrictions could extend until 04:00 GMT on Saturday, though this was not a confirmed time for flights to resume.Airlines and airports across the US warned passengers to expect delays. American Airlines stated it anticipates disruptions to its schedule for the rest of the day, depending on the duration of the FAA’s nationwide ground stop. United Airlines confirmed that domestic flights would not depart while the ground stop remained in place, though flights already airborne would continue.Mexico City’s main airport, Benito Juarez International Airport (AICM), announced that scheduled flights to and from the US are facing disruptions due to the restrictions. Inbound international flights headed toward the US are being managed on a case-by-case basis, Homeland Security Secretary Mullin said.Secretary Mullin also stated that he did not see any reason to connect the ground stop to a global outage of Microsoft’s email app Outlook earlier this week.This is the third nationwide ground stop for flights in the United States, following the September 11, 2001, attacks and a pilot system failure in January 2023. The January 2023 ground stop, caused by a glitch in the FAA’s NOTAM (Notice to Air Missions) system, disrupted over 11,000 flights and was later attributed to contract personnel “unintentionally deleting files.”The US air traffic control system has faced challenges with equipment failures, communication problems, and controller shortages as the FAA works to replace aging infrastructure. Congress approved $12.5 billion for an overhaul of the air traffic control system last year, and the FAA and White House requested an additional $30.1 billion for modernization efforts on Friday.FAA technicians are continuing to investigate the issue, and the agency is looking into whether the rollout of new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools played a role in the incident. Secretary Mullin warned that a resolution could take some time. The exact cause of the ground stop remains unclear, and no specific timeline has been provided for when flights will resume.
Why it matters for Nepal
In October 2026, there were 33,992 active Nepali student records in the United States. During the period from mid-February to mid-March 2026, 17 Nepali workers traveled to the United States with labor permits.
