The Federal Aviation Administration’s decision to halt all flights on Friday plunged airports and travelers across the United States into confusion, leaving passengers stranded on planes and in terminals as they waited for clarity.
At New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, travelers saw their plans abruptly canceled—some after they had already boarded.
Steve Honberger, who was traveling home to Portland, Oregon, with his wife and daughter, said his plane had been preparing for takeoff when the shutdown was announced.
“They didn’t seem to know what was happening, and they wanted to hold off as long as possible,” Honberger said. The aircraft remained at the gate for an hour and 40 minutes.
Realizing they would only continue waiting at the gate, they eventually asked to leave the plane and rebook.
Many travelers still decided to come to the airport despite uncertainty about when flights would resume. Rashid Kahn, who was headed to Miami, said he had “heard about the ground stop on the news, but the airline said we might take off at 10 or 11pm.”
“I am hopeful,” he added. “But maybe it’s something to do with the date. I’m not super serious, but it’s Friday the 13th.”
Tom Rolenaitis, who was returning a Shiba Inu show dog named Tsuki to Finland, called the situation frustrating. “It’s cutting into a three-day trip and I have to get him back to his owner. We have no idea what’s happening.”
A flight attendant bound for Barcelona, who declined to give his name, said he had been told his American Airlines flight would be slightly delayed and that all incoming international flights were being allowed to land.
Another crew member on the flight said cheerfully, “Things happen. Hopefully it will all be resolved.”
As the day progressed, passengers on international flights began boarding, prompting applause at the gates. “It’s moving, so that’s good,” an airline representative said. “But only international is going.”
The FAA issued the nationwide ground stop on Friday afternoon, citing communications problems at regional air traffic control centers, according to an agency notice. Four hours later, the FAA sent an advisory lifting the order.
“You can’t moan about this kind of thing … it’s such a first-world problem,” said Laura, a New York resident who was heading to San Francisco when her JetBlue flight was grounded. She still hoped her flight would depart. “That’s what I have to figure out,” she said, sitting on the terminal floor.
After the ground stop was lifted, more confusion followed. “My flight was canceled, then I went to a kiosk, put my information in and it said I’m leaving at 3am. Then I talked to the desk and they knew nothing,” said Larson Welsh, who was traveling from Paris to Las Vegas.
The outage has nonetheless caused upheaval for thousands of passengers. According to FlightAware, there have been 10,343 flight delays within, into or out of the United States so far, along with 1,479 cancellations. More than 1,000 aircraft were bound for the US when the ground stop was announced, according to Flightradar24.
Only two national ground stops have previously been issued: on September 11, 2001, after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, and in January 2023, after a communications failure.
The ground stop also disrupted the sports world, leaving NBA, NHL and college teams stranded as they tried to reach their destinations before a major weekend of games. It was also unclear whether referees, who typically fly to their assignments the day before games, would arrive on time.
Back at JFK, travelers expressed frustration and resignation.
“My flight to California was canceled with no information and no rebooking. My flight was canceled last night as well due to bad weather. Now I’m missing a family event,” said a man who identified himself only as Andy. “It’s frustrating. And I’m pissed.”
Honberger, meanwhile, tried to remain optimistic. “There are people sitting on the tarmac, so we count ourselves lucky and we were able to book ourselves a hotel for the night,” he said.
Tom Johnson and agencies contributed reporting