Reactions were mounting on Friday after the Federal Aviation Administration issued a rare nationwide ground stop for all flights in the United States, citing "extraordinary circumstances" and safety concerns.
The FAA cited a communications issue amid reports that the agency had started using a new AI tool. This is the third time the FAA has grounded all national flights; the first was on Sept. 11, 2001. A second time was in 2023 during a system outage.
Secretary Sean Duffy shared a statement on social media and updates on the situation.
"The @FAAnews issued a nationwide ground stop for all U.S. airports following a communication issue impacting all Air Route Traffic Control Centers. FAA technicians are investigating the issue. We will provide immediate updates as we have them," Duffy wrote.
The news drew responses on social media.
Marcy Wheeler, a national security journalist, pointed out the timing in a post on Bluesky.
"Yesterday," Wheeler wrote, sharing an Ars Technica report from Thursday indicating that a union representing the air traffic controllers had not had the opportunity to weigh in on or test the new technology.
CNN's Hadas Gold reported officials said it was not tied to a national security concern.
"Law enforcement sources tell my colleagues preliminary reports indicate this is NOT a cyberattack via @evanperez @HBRabinowitz," Gold wrote on X.
Rapper Flavor Flav was at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and shared on update on Bluesky.
"Ground stop will be 'multiple hours' This has been Flavor Flav from the Atlanta Airport. And now to Chuck D from JFK," he wrote on Bluesky.
Others also reacted.
"Key lawmakers are in the dark at the moment about the ground stop. FAA has been reaching out but they do not have answers thus far," Punchbowl News founder Jake Sherman wrote on X.
"Simply: Sean @SecDuffy is a moron," political commentator and former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann wrote on X.
Editor's Note: This story was updated with additional information about the FAA outage in 2023.