Last updated: 4:55pm Eastern (9:55pm GMT), Friday 13 November 2026. This is a developing story and this page will be updated as the FAA releases more.

The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered a nationwide ground stop, halting departures at every airport in the United States. The order was issued at 3:54pm Eastern on Friday 13 November 2026 "due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety", after a communications failure that the Transportation Secretary says affected all of the country's Air Route Traffic Control Centers. As of this update the stop is still in force and the FAA has given no time for lifting it. This page sets out what is confirmed, what it means if you are flying to, from or within the US today, what you are and are not owed, and what to do while you wait.

Quick answer: All US departures are held on the ground until further notice. Flights already in the air are landing normally, and international flights heading to the US are being handled case by case. Do not go to the airport without checking your airline's app, do not cancel your own booking (wait for the airline to cancel or delay it, so that your refund rights apply), and expect knock-on delays into the weekend. If your international flight is held for an hour or more, Umi's flight delay checker gives you 1GB of free mobile data for the country you are flying to.

What we know so far

Earlier in the afternoon the FAA had halted traffic in the Chicago area over communications difficulties before the stop was widened to the whole country, as reported here. Officials have not said whether an equipment failure or something else is responsible, and nothing has been said to suggest a cause beyond a technical fault. Delays were already building: Atlanta alone showed more than 500 delayed flights on FlightAware by late afternoon.

The FAA's own status page is nasstatus.faa.gov, though it has been loading only intermittently under the traffic.

What to do if you are flying today

1. Check your airline's app before anything else. It will show a new departure time or a cancellation before the airport screens do.

2. Do not cancel the booking yourself. If the airline cancels or delays the flight significantly and you then choose not to travel, you are owed a refund. If you cancel first, you are usually not.

3. If you have not left for the airport, stay where you are until the airline gives a departure time. A ground stop ends in stages, and flights leave in a queue.

4. If you are already at the gate, stay near it. When the stop lifts, boarding can be called at short notice.

5. If you have a connection, ask the airline to rebook you now, in the app or by chat, without waiting in the desk queue.

6. Keep receipts for food, transport and any hotel. You may be able to claim them from the airline, your travel insurance or your card.

7. Charge your phone and download your boarding pass, hotel details and offline maps while you have WiFi.

Expect disruption after the stop is lifted. Aircraft and crews will be in the wrong places, so delays and cancellations usually continue for a day or more.

What are you owed?

It depends on where your flight starts and which airline you are on.

• Flights within or from the US, on any airline. US rules give no compensation for delays. You are owed a cash refund if the airline cancels, or delays you by three hours or more on a domestic flight or six hours or more on an international one, and you choose not to travel. Because an air traffic control failure is outside the airlines' control, their usual promises of meals and hotels for delays they cause do not apply, though many airlines issue waivers that let you change flights free of charge. Check your airline's travel alerts page.

• Flights from the UK or EU to the US, on any airline, and flights from the US to the UK or EU on a UK or EU airline. UK and EU rules apply. The airline must look after you during a long delay with food and drink, and a hotel if you are held overnight, whatever the cause. Fixed cash compensation is not owed for air traffic control failures, which count as extraordinary circumstances.

• Flights from the US to the UK or EU on a US airline. US rules apply, as in the first case.

Our guide to what you're owed when a flight is delayed has the thresholds hour by hour.

Free mobile data if your international flight is held

Umi gives passengers 1GB of mobile data, free, when an international flight leaves 60 minutes or more late or is cancelled. Type your flight number into the flight delay checker, and if it qualifies the data is ready in the country you land in. There is no purchase and no claim form.

To be clear about who this covers today:

• A flight from the US to another country that is held by the ground stop for an hour or more qualifies, and the 1GB is for the country you are flying to.

• A flight to the US from abroad that is delayed an hour or more because of the stop also qualifies, and the 1GB is for the United States.

• Domestic US flights do not qualify. The offer is for international flights only.

The data lasts 7 days from when your phone first connects at the destination, and you need a phone that supports eSIM and the free Umi app. If your flight turns out to be on time, the checker gives you a code for extra credit instead.

Stuck at the gate? Check your flight while you wait, or get the Umi app so your data is ready when you land.