The Federal Aviation Administration said on Saturday it has not yet identified the root cause of the longest halt in flight departures to US airports since the September 11 attacks, after a technological disruption that appeared to involve routers and networking equipment grounded flights across the country on November 13.
At a press conference in Washington, officials reported issues with routers and networking equipment, citing products and services from Cisco and L3Harris Technologies.
"Because of our lack of identifying the root cause, we were unwilling to take any risk that this propagation could actually result in a sensor losing connectivity with aircraft," Bedford said. "What we saw was instability. We couldn't explain the instability."
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the FAA's network is tied to L3Harris. “Until I can build [the new architecture], I'm stuck with L3Harris, who owns this network,” Duffy said.
On Friday, Duffy and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin called for an air travel overhaul, with Duffy requesting $50 billion from Congress.
In a statement on X, L3Harris said that in partnership with other tech companies it has completed more than 70% of a planned conversion of airspace communications from legacy copper wires to a fiber-optic system. "We are supporting the FAA in its investigation to understand the conditions that led to the Nov. 13 ground stop of our nation's air travel," the statement said. "L3Harris takes the nationwide ground stop and its impact on travelers, airlines and air traffic operations seriously."
Bedford stressed that router updates are routine agency business, separate from modernization. "We are constantly replacing 2,000, you know, Cisco 600 routers with Juniper routers, right? So this is ordinary course of business stuff. This is not part of the … FAA $12.5 billion modernization efforts. So let's not conflate those two things," he said.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The ground stop disrupted flights nationwide for the longest period since 9/11, affecting hundreds of thousands of travelers and airline operations.
- The failure raises concerns about the reliability of aging air-traffic control infrastructure and the FAA's ability to maintain critical systems.
- A $50 billion overhaul request signals potential major government spending on aviation technology, with implications for taxpayers and the economy.
Background
The FAA operates a vast network of communications systems for air-traffic control, relying on legacy copper lines and newer fiber-optic technology. The November 13 ground stop followed instability in routers and networking equipment supplied by Cisco and L3Harris Technologies. Transportation officials have called for a comprehensive overhaul, and L3Harris is already partway through converting to fiber.
Key Perspectives
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford: The root cause is unidentified, and the agency halted flights because it could not rule out the risk of sensors losing connectivity with aircraft. He described the instability as unexplained.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy: The FAA is stuck with L3Harris's network until a new architecture is built, and he has requested $50 billion from Congress for an air travel overhaul.
L3Harris: The company said it is supporting the FAA's investigation, and has completed more than 70% of a planned fiber-optic conversion.
What to Watch
- Whether the FAA and its contractors identify the root cause in the coming days or weeks.
- Congress's response to Duffy's $50 billion funding request, and any legislative action on air-traffic modernization.
- Potential impact on L3Harris and Cisco's contracts and regulatory standing.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedThe root cause of the flight ground stop remains unknown, according to the FAA.US Top News and Analysis: “'Root cause’ of nationwide ground stop is unknown, FAA says.”
- SupportedThe ground stop was the longest halt in flight departures to US airports since the September 11 attacks.US Top News and Analysis: “The root cause of the longest halt in flight departures to U.S. airports since 9/11 remains unclear after a Saturday press conference by U.S. transportation officials.”
- SupportedA technological disruption grounded flights across the country on November 13.US Top News and Analysis: “Routers and networking equipment appeared to be involved in the technological disruption that grounded flights across the country”
- SupportedRouters and networking equipment appeared to be involved in the disruption, but a definitive cause had not been established by Saturday afternoon.US Top News and Analysis: “Routers and networking equipment appeared to be involved in the technological disruption that grounded flights across the country, but a definitive cause has not been established as of Saturday afternoon.”
- SupportedBedford said officials were unwilling to risk propagation causing a sensor to lose connectivity with aircraft because they had not identified the root cause.US Top News and Analysis: “Because of our lack of identifying the root cause, we were unwilling to take any risk that this propagation could actually result in a sensor losing connectivity with aircraft,”
- SupportedBedford said officials saw instability they could not explain.US Top News and Analysis: “What we saw was instability. We couldn't explain the instability,”
- SupportedDuffy said he was stuck with L3Harris, which owns the network, until he could build the new architecture.US Top News and Analysis: ““Until I can build [the new architecture], I'm stuck with L3Harris, who owns this network,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.”
- SupportedDuffy and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin called for an air travel overhaul on Friday.US Top News and Analysis: “On Friday, Duffy and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin called for an air travel overhaul, with Duffy requesting $50 billion from Congress.”
- SupportedDuffy requested $50 billion from Congress.US Top News and Analysis: “On Friday, Duffy and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin called for an air travel overhaul, with Duffy requesting $50 billion from Congress.”
- SupportedL3Harris said it had completed more than 70% of the planned conversion from legacy copper wires to fiber-optic airspace communications, in partnership with other tech companies.US Top News and Analysis: “In a statement on X, L3Harris said that it, in partnership with other tech companies, has completed more than 70% of the planned airspace communications conversion from legacy copper wires to a fiber-optic system.”
- SupportedL3Harris said it was supporting the FAA’s investigation into the conditions that led to the Nov. 13 ground stop.US Top News and Analysis: “"We are supporting the FAA in its investigation to understand the conditions that led to the Nov. 13 ground stop of our nation's air travel," the statement said.”
- SupportedBedford said the FAA was routinely replacing 2,000 Cisco 600 routers with Juniper routers and that this was separate from the modernization effort.US Top News and Analysis: “"We are constantly replacing 2,000, you know, Cisco 600 routers with Juniper routers, right? So this is ordinary course of business stuff. This is not part of the … FAA $12.5 billion modernization efforts.”