Thousands of flights canceled as airlines work to dig out from nationwide ground stop

WASHINGTON, Nov 14, (AP): More than 2,000 flights were canceled Saturday as airlines across the US worked to dig out from the longest nationwide ground stop in 25 years, which stranded passengers and forced professional and college sports teams to scramble for alternate transportation. Trump administration officials said new technology being added to the nation’s air traffic control system overloaded antiquated equipment and caused "intermittent” communications and radar gaps, leading to the flight shutdown of more than four hours.

A limited number of domestic flights departed after the stop was lifted around 8:15 p.m. ET. But the effects could be felt for days, with officials saying the system is likely to be operating normally in time to handle the Thanksgiving travel rush. The nationwide stop was the first since January 2023, when another key FAA computer system that sends notices to pilots malfunctioned, and the second since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Emily Brown and her 14-year-old daughter waited more than four hours Friday at the Dallas airport for their flight to Columbus, Ohio, before giving up. They were traveling to surprise her daughter’s best friend. Instead, she had to settle for phoning the friend through tears in the airport, Brown said. "She saved up her money to buy her own ticket, and she’s planned this whole weekend,” Brown said.

"Now we’re not sure when we’re gonna be able to go.” Ruth Coles was stuck on her plane for more than five hours after landing at Los Angeles International Airport from Newark, New Jersey. She said the passengers were told they were waiting for a gate to open. "The pilot keeps saying they are telling him we are next in line,” Coles said. At airports across the US, passengers stared at screens showing delays or rushed to find buses or trains to their destinations. Some passed the time by breaking out in song.

Sports teams scheduled to play this weekend adjusted game start times, searched for hotel rooms, rescheduled flights and chartered buses. Auburn University's football team opted to take a bus to Mississippi State and the Saturday start time was pushed from noon ET to 4:15 p.m. Other universities affected by the stoppage included Baylor, Washington, Kansas State, Minnesota and No. 19 Ole Miss, which did not plan to fly until Saturday morning for its game against Oklahoma.