# Trump Administration Blames Overloaded Systems for Nationwide Flight Ground Stop

> Trump administration says air traffic control tech overload caused longest U.S. ground stop in 25 years.
- Title: Trump Administration Blames Overloaded Systems for Nationwide…
- Summary: Trump administration says air traffic control tech overload caused longest U.S. ground stop in 25 years.
- Keywords: faa, air traffic control, ground stop, thanksgiving travel, trump administration, airports, flights, airlines, united airlines, dulles airport, nashville airport, Houstonchronicle
- Source: Houstonchronicle — https://houstonchronicle.com/business/article/flights-halted-airports-across-us-due-unspecified-22529690.php
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: faa, air traffic control, ground stop, thanksgiving travel, trump administration, airports, flights, airlines, united airlines, dulles airport, nashville airport, news
## Ground Stop Begins
Trump administration officials said new technology added to air traffic control system overloaded antiquated parts causing intermittent communications and radar gaps.

> intermittent communications and radar gaps
## Longest Ground Stop in 25 Years
The ground stop was the first since January 2023 and the second since 9/11, lasting five hours.

> the longest nationwide ground stop in 25 years
## Travelers Affected
Over 1.5 million passengers and 11,000 flights were impacted by the ground stop.

> 1.5 million passengers
## System Overload
Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin said new equipment overwhelmed older systems without signs of cyberattack.

> new equipment, new technology
## Transportation Secretary's Stance
Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy blamed Congress for underfunding air traffic control upgrades.

> We didn't think we would have this kind of outage. We did
## Impact on Travelers
Passengers faced delays and uncertainty as they tried to reach destinations during the ground stop.

> There's not really any information being passed to me
## Stranded Teams
NBA, NHL, and college teams were stranded as they tried to reach their destinations.

> NBA, NHL and college teams
## System Recovery
Officials expect the system to recover in time for Thanksgiving travel but warn of more disruptions.

> We were able to review what went wrong, and then reboot the system and go
## Past Issues
Similar problems occurred in September and last year due to aging equipment.

> Aging equipment was also blamed for the brief radar outages last year
## Expert Analysis
Aviation expert says the issue was nationwide scale unlike 9/11 aftermath.

> If you don't have that ability, whether it's because the old wires that they have are just run down or for whatever reason
## Key takeaway

Trump administration officials blamed outdated air traffic control systems for a nationwide flight ground stop that affected over 1 million travelers and lasted five hours.