The Library Media — National & World · National Desk
Flight Cancellations Stretch Into a Second Day After the Nationwide Ground Stop
By Eleanor Ever Loyal
Flight disruptions continued across the United States on Saturday, with thousands more cancellations and delays reported a day after federal aviation authorities lifted a nationwide ground stop. Airlines continued working to reposition aircraft and crews, while passengers faced extended waits, missed connections and overnight stays in airports.
More than 2,500 flights were cancelled in the United States on Saturday, and more than 12,000 were delayed, according to FlightAware figures reported by The Associated Press. The cancellations brought the total number of flights cancelled since Friday to more than 10,000, the AP reported.
Axios reported a higher Saturday cancellation count, putting the number at 3,000 as the disruption entered a second day. The figures differ by source and the time at which each count was taken. They are separate reported estimates, rather than a single combined total.
The continued disruption followed Friday’s failure of a communications system used by pilots and air traffic controllers. The Federal Aviation Administration halted all flights on November 13 after the outage, in what the AP described as the longest ground stop in the United States in 25 years.
The FAA lifted the stop on Friday night, but the end of the nationwide restriction did not immediately restore normal operations. Aircraft and crews were out of position, leaving airlines to work through the resulting disruption as they attempted to resume schedules.
The Saturday figures showed the scale of that recovery effort. More than 10,000 cancellations since Friday meant the effects extended well beyond the period when flights were formally grounded. The additional cancellations and delays also left passengers facing uncertainty after the initial stop had ended.
The FAA attributed the communications failure to decades-old equipment. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the system had failed, while officials warned that the consequences could be felt for days.
The continued cancellations reflected the difficulty of restoring a nationwide flight network after a disruption affecting its communications infrastructure. When aircraft and crews cannot reach their scheduled locations, airlines may be unable to operate later flights even after the original restriction has been removed. The reported repositioning of aircraft and crews remained part of the recovery on Saturday.
Airlines responded by offering passengers options to change their travel plans. Carriers waived change fees and offered refunds and rebooking, according to the reported accounts. Those measures provided alternatives for travelers whose flights had been cancelled, although they did not immediately resolve the practical difficulties of finding available seats or completing journeys.
Passengers experienced long waits both in aircraft and inside airport terminals. Some waited for hours aboard planes, while others remained in terminals as cancellations and delays accumulated. Some travelers slept in airports as the disruption continued overnight.
The disruption affected travelers beyond those whose flights were cancelled outright. Saturday’s reported total of more than 12,000 delays indicated that many scheduled flights were also operating behind time, adding uncertainty for passengers trying to make connections or determine when they could depart.
The difference between the AP and Axios cancellation figures underscores that the reported totals depended on the source and counting time. The AP’s FlightAware figures put Saturday cancellations above 2,500, while Axios reported 3,000. Neither figure should be treated as an exact final count for the day.
The accounts provided no reports of injuries or safety incidents connected with the disruption. The reported consequences centered on flight cancellations, delays, passenger waits and the operational work required to restore aircraft and crews to their scheduled positions.
Although the FAA lifted the ground stop Friday night, officials’ warning that effects could last for days left the duration of the recovery uncertain. The Saturday figures showed that the end of the formal stop had not brought an immediate return to normal flight schedules.
For passengers, the second day of disruption meant continuing to check flight status, seek rebooking or refunds, and wait for airlines to work through the backlog. The available reports did not establish when the nationwide effects would fully subside.
Eleanor Ever Loyal
Lead Counsel, The Library Media
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