On Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, the FAA issued a nationwide ground stop for all U.S. airports, halting departures “until further notice” after communications problems hit multiple Air Route Traffic Control Centers. Flightradar24 counted about 3,100 flights in the air heading to U.S. airports immediately after the alert. Inbound international flights were handled case-by-case. The FAA said the issue was not a cyberattack and technicians were investigating.
The FAA cited a communications issue affecting the regional air traffic control centers that direct planes; the exact cause was still under investigation. Officials said there was no indication of an attack. Reports suggested investigators were examining whether a software update caused the outage, but that was not confirmed. Previous nationwide ground stops occurred in 2023 and on Sept. 11, 2001.
The FAA issued a nationwide ground stop for all U.S. airports Friday due to a communications problem. Flightradar24 counted about 3,100 flights airborne and bound for U.S. airports immediately after the alert; delays and cancellations were mounting, though the exact 7,000 figure isn't in the sources checked.
New Orleans Mayor Helena Moreno said all passengers are accounted for after a tanker hit the docked river cruiser American Heritage; 32 passengers were hospitalized, none with critical injuries.
The American Heritage was carrying about 129 passengers when the Atlantic Asphalt tanker struck it while docked on the Mississippi River in New Orleans; first responders rescued passengers.
U.S. officials say the FAA's nationwide ground stop was a communications/technical problem, not a cyberattack or criminal act. Reports that investigators are looking at a possible software update are preliminary/unconfirmed.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said there is no current indication of an attack on the U.S.; the FAA grounded flights nationwide Friday afternoon due to communications problems.
The Wall Street Journal re
BA tanker hits a docked riverboat in New Orleans. All 129 people aboard are now accounted for.
BFox News is calling it a 'miracle on the Mississippi.' This time, the word fits.
BMayor Helena Moreno says 32 passengers are in local hospitals, none with critical injuries.
BThe boat is the American Heritage, hit by the Atlantic Asphalt tanker while docked.
BFirst responders are pulling people off. The video shows a rescue that could have been a mass casualty event.
BI'll push back on 'miracle' a little: the boat was docked, the tanker hit it, and these crews train for this.
BFair, but you're talking about a river cruise with 129 people, a lot of them older, and zero fatalities. That's not nothing.
BIt's a very good outcome. But why was a loaded passenger vessel sitting there when a tanker came through?
BThat's the right question. What was the tanker doing? Pilot error? Mechanical failure? We don't know yet.
BThe Coast Guard will figure that out. But I think this is the moment to ask if riverfront cruise docks need more separation from commercial traffic.
BOh, come on. The Mississippi has carried tankers, barges, and passenger boats side by side for a hundred years. One accident doesn't make the system broken.
BIt's not broken. But it's also not designed for today's bigger ships and a much more crowded New Orleans riverfront. That's my point.
BSo every time something goes wrong, we add another rule? Pilots are already heavily regulated, and the river is a working industrial waterway.
BNo, no— I'm not saying add a rule for the sake of it. I'm saying the risk profile has changed, and the rules haven't.
BBut you don't know that dock placement caused this. The tanker could have had a mechanical problem or bad piloting. Let's not write the report before the investigation.
BI'm not writing the report. I'm asking why a fuel tanker and a cruise ship full of tourists were that close in the first place.
BBecause it's a working river! That's what happens on the Mississippi.
BAnd that's exactly my point: a working river and a tourist riverboat dock need different rules than they had in 1990.
BOkay, we disagree. But here's what we agree on: the rescue worked, and no one died.
BAbsolutely. I'd rather argue about dock spacing than read the names of the dead.
BThose local first responders, fire crews, and harbor pilots deserve a lot of credit today.
BThey do. Local crews were the ones pulling people off that boat.
BDifferent world entirely—but same theme of Washington being asked to fix a mess.
BThe Yankees' president is lobbying Congress to pass a national college sports bill, and it's coming down to a lame-duck House vote.
BThe Wall Street Journal reports Randy Levine has been pushing the Protect College Sports Act, which would set national rules for athlete pay, transfers, and name, image and likeness deals.
BI think this bill matters more than people realize. College sports are run by a patchwork of state laws and court decisions right now.
BBut do we really want Congress writing the rules for college football?
BWe already have chaos! One school can buy a roster while another can't, depending on what state it's in. A national standard is the fix.
BThis is the same Congress that can't pass a budget. You want them designing college sports?
BThey don't need to design it. They need to set a floor: one transfer window, real contracts, no more pay-for-play chaos.
BAnd who enforces that? The NCAA has shown it can't. You'd need a new federal body, more bureaucracy.
BRight now the alternative is judges deciding eligibility case by case. I'll take elected officials over that.
BI think there's a real argument that the market is fixing itself. Schools are already forming revenue-sharing deals, and players finally have leverage.
BIn the Power Four, yes. What about everyone else? A national bill protects smaller programs and women's sports from being cannibalized.
BI'm not convinced. The Protect College Sports Act is well-intentioned, but it'll get loaded up with favors in a lame-duck session.
BThat's true of every bill. The status quo is worse. My view: if Congress can't do this, the whole system blows up.
BMaybe that's what needs to happen—let it blow up and rebuild from scratch.
BSpoken like someone who doesn't have a college football team.
BI have a team. I just don't want Washington to run it.
BFair enough. But we're not talking about running it—just setting the rules so the game isn't decided by which state your school happens to be in.
BAnd I'd argue that's what the conferences and courts are already doing, imperfectly. But we'll see if the House has the votes.
BThat's the question. The bill needs support in a lame-duck House, and every vote counts.
BFor now, the real headline is still New Orleans: 129 people on that boat, all accounted for.
BThat's the kind of ending you hope for when the first alert comes in.