The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide ground stop Friday afternoon, halting departing flights at airports across Texas and the rest of the country.
The rare order affects major Texas airports, including Dallas Fort Worth International and Dallas Love Field in North Texas, George Bush Intercontinental and William P. Hobby in Houston, along with airports in Austin, San Antonio and elsewhere in the state.
U.S Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the ground stop was prompted by a communications problem affecting air traffic control centers nationwide.
“FAA technicians are investigating the issue. We will provide immediate updates as we have them,” Duffy wrote on social media Friday.
The agency cited “extraordinary circumstances” and safety concerns in issuing the order, according to CNN. The FAA also directed all departing aircraft to remain on the ground until further notice. International flights arriving in the United States would be handled on a case-by-case basis.
It wasn’t immediately clear how long the ground stop would last or how many flights at Texas airports had been delayed or canceled.
Nationwide ground stops are extremely rare. The FAA last issued one in January 2023, when an outage involving a system used to alert pilots to potential hazards disrupted air travel across the country.
Before that, the FAA hadn’t issued a nationwide ground stop since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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