For about four hours on Friday, nobody flew out of Las Vegas. Nobody flew out of anywhere in America.
The FAA ordered a nationwide ground stop on Friday, November 13, halting departures at every U.S. airport, including Harry Reid International Airport at 5757 Wayne Newton Boulevard, Las Vegas, NV 89119. The stop was lifted around 8:15 p.m. Eastern time, 5:15 p.m. our time, but the damage to the weekend is already done.
What Happened, Hour by Hour
The FAA issued the order at 3:54 p.m. Eastern time, 12:54 p.m. in Las Vegas. Its advisory read: "Due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety. Attention all aircraft operators, by order of the Federal Aviation Command Center all airports are ground stopped. All departing traffic should remain ground stopped until further notice. Inbound international flights will be managed on a case by case basis."
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the stop followed a communication issue affecting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers, the regional facilities that guide planes between airports. He added: "FAA technicians are investigating the issue."
| Time (PT) | What happened |
|---|---|
| 12:54 p.m. | FAA issues the nationwide ground stop |
| Afternoon | Departures halt at Harry Reid; inbound flights keep landing |
| 3:40 p.m. | FlightAware counts over 10,000 delays and over 3,000 cancellations nationwide |
| 5:15 p.m. | Ground stop lifted, about four hours after it began |
At Harry Reid, departures were halted while inbound flights continued to land, and airport officials described the cause as an equipment outage. Even the UNLV football team got caught in it, traveling to New Mexico for Saturday's game.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters there was no sign of an attack. "There is no prior indication as of yet that this was a nefarious attack against us," he said. "It's just a telecommunication outage as of right now."
Here is the part most travelers missed. This was only the third nationwide ground stop in U.S. history, after September 11, 2001, and a January 2023 computer failure that lasted about 90 minutes. Friday's version ran more than twice as long.
Why a Lifted Stop Still Wrecks Your Weekend
Lifted does not mean normal. Aircraft and crews sat in the wrong cities for four hours, and some crews timed out before their planes ever moved.
"The longer the ground stop, the longer the recovery time," airline analyst Robert W. Mann Jr. told USA TODAY. "At this point, the day is effectively done."
The ripple reached overseas, too. At the FAA's request, U.S.-bound departures from 42 countries, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, were suspended between 5 p.m. and midnight Eastern time.
CNBC reported that cancellations will stretch into the weekend. That lands hard in Las Vegas, with Grand Prix week opening November 19 to 21 and visitors already starting to arrive.
If You Are Flying Out of Vegas This Weekend, Do This
- Check your airline app before you leave home. Flight status comes from the airlines, and Friday night boards were changing by the hour.
- Grab the waiver. Delta and United both issued travel waivers covering flights scheduled for November 13 and 14, so rebooking a hit flight should not cost you a change fee.
- Rebook early and nonstop. Going flight expert Derek Cann advises that the earliest flight of the day and nonstops are your best bets for avoiding knock-on delays.
- Keep every receipt. Meals, a hotel night, a rideshare. If your airline offers reimbursement for the delay or cancellation, those receipts are your proof.
- Picking someone up? Arrivals kept landing through the stop, but expect crowded curbs and terminals at Harry Reid all weekend.
Planes are moving again. Schedules are not healed yet, so the smartest Vegas move this weekend is simple: check before you go, and give yourself room.
