The Federal Aviation Administration ordered every airport in the United States ground stopped on Friday afternoon, halting departing flights nationwide — including at every commercial airport in Ohio — in a rare order the agency said was issued “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety,” according to the FAA advisory quoted by NBC, Fox Weather and Flying Magazine.
The advisory, issued by the FAA’s Air Traffic Control System Command Center, took effect at about 3:54 p.m. Eastern time on Friday, November 13, according to reporting by News9 and the New England Signal. “All departing traffic should remain ground stopped until further notice,” the advisory states, adding that inbound international flights will be managed on a case-by-case basis.
For Ohio travelers, the order applies by its terms to departures at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, John Glenn Columbus International Airport, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, Dayton International Airport, Toledo Express Airport, Akron-Canton Airport and the state’s other commercial airports. Flights already in the air were being allowed to continue to their destinations, according to ZeroHedge’s account of the advisory and air traffic controller reports.
Flying Magazine reported that the stop is only the second nationwide ground stop since the September 11, 2001 attacks, following the January 2023 failure of the FAA’s Notice to Air Missions system. The magazine said air traffic controllers across the country confirmed the order and were discussing an outage, while AirLive reported a widespread equipment outage affecting air traffic control facilities. On the cause, an FAA spokesperson told CNN there is a communications problem impacting the Air Route Traffic Control Centers, which handle flights traveling across the country, and USA Today reported that the FAA cited frequency issues across the National Airspace System.
Earlier on Friday, the FAA had issued ground stops at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports because of an equipment outage, according to NBC Chicago. News9 reported the nationwide advisory listed a window running until 10 p.m. Central time Friday, while Flying Magazine reported one controller indicated a potential end time of 5 p.m. Eastern; the FAA advisory itself said the stop remains in effect until further notice, and NewsForce247 is reporting the advisory’s own wording where the reports differ.
Travelers with flights scheduled out of Ohio airports on Friday evening should check directly with their airline before heading to the airport, as cancellations and delays are expected to cascade after departures resume. NewsForce247 will update this story as the FAA releases more information about the cause of the stop and a timeline for restoring flights.
Photo: Analogue Kid, CC BY-SA 4.0
Update — Friday, November 13, 2026: Federal officials said the nationwide ground stop followed a telecommunications outage across the Federal Aviation Administration, and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters there was no indication the outage was a nefarious attack, according to reporting by the Cincinnati Enquirer. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the stop followed a communication issue affecting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers, according to USA Today. In Ohio, the Columbus Dispatch reported 94 delays and three cancellations at John Glenn Columbus International Airport as of 4:45 p.m., based on FlightAware data, and the Cincinnati Enquirer reported departure delays averaging about an hour and a half at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, with 10 departing flights delayed and six cancelled as of 5:45 p.m. The FAA advisory remained in effect until further notice on Friday evening.
Update — Friday, November 13, 2026: The nationwide ground stop remains in effect into Friday evening, but departures will be allowed in coordination with the FAA Air Traffic Control System Command Center as en-route control centers recover, according to the Command Center advisory issued at 5:46 p.m. Eastern and reported by outlets tracking the advisory; the next FAA update is expected at 11 p.m. Eastern. The Points Guy reported that airlines said some departures were still being permitted as of 6 p.m., and that nearly 1,700 U.S. flights scheduled for Friday had been canceled and more than 10,000 delayed by 6 p.m., according to FlightAware data cited by The Points Guy. Ohio travelers should expect delays and cancellations to continue tonight and check their flight before heading to the airport.