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TravelSaturday, November 14

Flights resumed after a nationwide FAA ground stop grounded planes at Burlington's airport

The Daily Burlington teamFrom today’s edition · 1 min read · 4 sources

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If you had a flight out of Leahy Burlington International Airport on Friday, the FAA's nationwide ground stop got in the way. Airport Director Nic Longo said there were no outgoing flights at , and the FAA said it imposed the ground stop “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety.”

  • Airport status: open; incoming flights could still land
  • Air traffic control at BTV: could still talk to pilots
  • Cause: telecommunications issue hitting air traffic control
  • Hack: federal officials haven't indicated one

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said a communications issue is affecting the regional air traffic control centers that guide planes between airports, and FAA technicians are investigating. Flights have since resumed, but lines formed at BTV's check-in counters as people waited for answers.

22regional centers affected, per Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy

Those centers direct planes en route between airports nationwide.

Source: VTDigger

“I saw a couple of people in tears.”

Chad Brightbill, a traveler from Colorado

Friday's nationwide ground stop was the first since January 2023

  1. Sept. 2001Nationwide ground stop follows the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
  2. Jan. 2023Nationwide ground stop after a key FAA computer system malfunctions.
  3. Nov. 13FAA grounds all flights nationwide over air traffic control communications problems.

Sources: WPTZ, VTDigger

Sources: WPTZ, WCAX, VTDigger

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WinooskiWinooski's first hotel, the Sugar House, is open with a maple theme and a rooftop restaurantWinooski's first hotel, the Sugar House Hotel, opened Nov. 5 after decades of planning, and a welcome party Tuesday night was filled with applause. It's a Marriott Tribute hotel with a sugaring theme: each room is named after a Vermont sugarhouse, and guests can even make their own maple creemee on arrival.Today’s editionRead

More getting around from local newsrooms

All getting around news

  1. WPTZ5 hours ago

    Nationwide ground stop snarls plans for travelers at Burlington International Airport

    Two people who spoke to NBC5 said they were on their flight when the pilot broke the news that their flights and thousands of others across the U.S. would not be taking off.

  2. WCAX11 hours ago

    FAA grounds all flights nationwide due to 'extraordinary circumstances'

    The FAA ordered a nationwide groundstop on Friday afternoon due to air traffic control communications problems.

  3. VTDigger11 hours ago

    Flights halted at Burlington airport and across US due to air traffic control communications problems

    The FAA notice on Friday afternoon said the ground stop was being imposed “due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety.” Read the story on VTDigger here: Flights halted at Burlington airport and across US due to air traffic control communications problems.

  4. WCAX12 hours ago

    FAA lifts ground stop on U.S. flights; Burlington travelers rebook

    CBS News is reporting that the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a nationwide groundstop on Friday ‘due to extraordinary circumstances and reasons of safety.’