US Airspace Reopens After Ground Stop, No Cyberattack Found

On November 13, 2026, the United States lifted a nationwide ground stop that had halted flights for several hours. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced that the airspace was now open, but warned that it would take time for normal travel to resume.

Duffy explained during a late-night briefing at the White House that the disruption was caused by outdated equipment, not a cyberattack or issues with Microsoft. He stated, “At 8:15 tonight Eastern Time, we’ve opened up the airspace,” but cautioned that flights would not resume immediately.

The ground stop was issued after a significant communications failure, which the Department of Homeland Security confirmed was not a result of any malicious attack. Duffy mentioned that the old hardware, including switches and routers, became overloaded and failed. He emphasized the need for Congress to consider funding upgrades to the US Air Traffic Control System.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin also dismissed rumors linking the outage to a cyberattack or the recent Microsoft outage affecting services globally. He reassured the public that there was no evidence of a coordinated attack and that security agencies were still investigating.

Passengers at major airports, including Los Angeles International and Chicago O’Hare, faced delays and cancellations as the situation unfolded. Despite the chaos, both Duffy and Mullin insisted that flying remained safe for Americans.