The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered a ground stop at all airports in the U.S.
The FAA issued an advisory on Friday afternoon, citing "extraordinary unforeseen circumstances" for safety.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said that there was no indication of a nefarious attack on the ground stop, and a telecommunication outage was the cause.
"This isn't another 9/11," Mullin said. "There is no reason for the public to be afraid or scared for your loved ones."
Mullin said communication was being overwhelmed at certain levels, but all communication hadn't ceased.
He said they "just can't rule anything out at this point," surrounding the reason for the telecommunication problem.
He said there was no updated timeline for lifting the ground stop.
AIRPORT GROUND STOPS VS. GROUND DELAYS: WHAT ARE THEY AND HOW DO THEY HAPPEN?
A ground stop completely halts arriving traffic at their departure airport for the entire duration of the ground stop.
Delta, one of the nation’s largest airlines, said in a statement, "No Delta flights are departing at this time and flights currently enroute will continue to their destinations."
No flights will be allowed to take off during this nationwide alert.
Inbound international flights will be managed on a case-by-case basis, according to the FAA.
Airports began issuing statements as thousands of flights were canceled or delayed. More than 10,200 flights were delayed and more than 3,500 were canceled, as of 7:00 p.m. ET.
As of 7:00 p.m., 528 commercial flights were en route.
About an hour after the ground stop went into effect, some flights were being allowed to land.
The last time a nationwide ground stop was ordered was on Jan. 11, 2023 due to an issue with the Notice to Air Mission Systems, and lasted about an hour and a half.
Friday’s incident marks the second-longest nationwide ground stop in U.S. history, surpassed only by the roughly two-day shutdown following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Flights in the air may have to land wherever they are as this ground stop is in effect. At the time of the order, roughly 3,000 fights were in the air.
This is a breaking news story. FOX Weather will continue to bring you the latest information as it becomes available.
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