The Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide ground stop Friday for all airports due to a communication issue affecting air traffic control. The agency's alert said the stop was "due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety."
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters Friday evening that the federal government is investigating, there was no indication yet that the incident was a "nefarious attack" and that everyone is safe.
"It's just a telecommunications outage as of now," he told reporters.
Mullin said the government will look into the root of the problem.
"This isn't another 9/11. I cannot repeat that enough," he added.
Shortly after the stop was issued, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in an X statement that it was "due a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers."
"FAA technicians are investigating the issue," he said in an Twitter post.
This is the second time since September 11, 2001 that the FAA has ordered a nationwide ground stop. The last time was in 2023, when the FAA NOTAM system went down and pilots could not get their pre-departure paperwork.
Air Route Traffic Control Centers are responsible for all flights above 18,000 feet. There are 22 of those centers in the U.S.
