FAA Ground Stop: What It Means for Medellín Flights

Quick answer: the FAA ground stop ran from 3:54 to 8:15 p.m. ET on Friday, November 13, 2026. It is over, but cancellations and delays continued on Saturday, so it may still affect Medellín flights to the US. We found no published list of cancelled flights from José María Córdova airport (MDE) in Rionegro. The nonstop routes most exposed are Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, New York–JFK and Houston. Check your flight status with your airline before leaving for the airport and ask about a penalty-free change.

Information current as of Saturday, November 14, 2026; figures below are from the cited reports and are changing.

What happened in the FAA ground stop

• 3:36 p.m. ET: controllers saw radar and aircraft-communication problems, per NBC News.
• 3:54 p.m. ET: the FAA ordered a nationwide ground stop.
• 8:15 p.m. ET: the stop was lifted, just over four hours with no US departures.

(Times per NBC News and CBS News.)

The FAA said a router sent too much data and overloaded older air traffic control equipment; Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said it did not appear to be a cyberattack, though nothing was completely certain, per the same NBC report. CBS News reported preliminary findings pointing to old Cisco routers and said accounts of the cause were still conflicting.

Flights already airborne could continue. United said international departures were being handled case by case by the FAA while the stop was in force.

Why direction matters: a US ground stop directly halts departures from US airports, so US→Medellín flights were held on the ground. Medellín→US flights are not covered by the same order, but they are exposed indirectly: their aircraft and crews may have been stuck in the US, and arrivals into congested US hubs get delayed. That is why “exposed” below does not mean “cancelled”.

Why the backlog lasts into Saturday

The backlog did not clear when the stop ended. Figures from the reports differ by outlet, so treat counts as approximate:

• Friday: more than 7,000 cancellations (NBC); 9,159 cancellations per FlightAware (CBS).
• Saturday, as of 9:30 a.m. ET: more than 3,700 cancellations and 1,990 delays per FlightAware, concentrated at Atlanta, Chicago O’Hare and New York JFK (NBC). These counts were still moving, so check a live tracker such as FlightAware.

Airlines still need to reposition aircraft and crews, and some crews may hit duty-time limits, NBC reports. NBC also reports that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he expects traffic to recover before the Thanksgiving rush.

We did not find Miami- or Fort Lauderdale-specific delay figures for November 13 in the coverage we reviewed. They matter to Medellín travelers because they are on the nonstop list below. Atlanta and Chicago matter if you connect.

Medellín–US flights exposed to the FAA ground stop

El Colombiano lists these nonstop routes from José María Córdova:

• Avianca: Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, New York–JFK
• American Airlines: Miami
• JetBlue: Fort Lauderdale
• United: Houston
• LATAM: Miami

Spirit also connects the airport to the US, per the same article, but the article does not say which Spirit routes. It does not say which specific flights were cancelled either, and we have not found a published list of cancelled MDE flights. So this list shows exposure, not confirmed cancellations. For another route on the same corridor, see our report on the Avianca AV42 Medellín–JFK flight.

Airline statements, per El Colombiano: Avianca said it was reviewing the impact; LATAM said it was monitoring the situation; Copa advised passengers to check flight status before going to the airport. The paper adds that several airlines activated penalty-free date-change policies, but it names no airlines and gives no terms, so treat any waiver as unconfirmed until your carrier says so.

What to do if you fly in the next few days

1. Check your flight on the airline’s app or site before leaving Medellín. The airport is in Rionegro, outside the city, so allow generous travel time (roughly an hour or more depending on traffic; our estimate); see our airport bus guide for the options.

2. Ask about a free date change if your flight is cancelled or you would rather move it. Get the new booking in writing.

3. Watch connections. A cancelled leg at Atlanta, Chicago or JFK can strand a Medellín itinerary even if your MDE departure is on time.

4. Mind the airport’s own limits. The runway is closed overnight through November 29, per El Colombiano and Telemedellín, so rebooked flights have fewer early-morning options:

   • Until November 22: 12:30–5:30 a.m.
   • November 23–29: 1:00–5:00 a.m.

   Details in our runway closure explainer.

5. Know your refund rights. Under the US Department of Transportation’s automatic refund rule, airlines must refund your ticket if they cancel or significantly change your flight and you do not accept the rebooking or credit offered. Confirm the rule’s current status on the DOT page. Whether you also get meals or a hotel is a separate question: air-traffic-control disruptions are generally treated as outside an airline’s control, so that cover is not guaranteed. That is our reading, so ask your carrier and check the DOT Airline Customer Service Dashboard for each airline’s commitments.

FAQ: FAA ground stop and Medellín flights

Were Medellín flights cancelled by the FAA ground stop? We found no published list of cancelled MDE flights as of November 14. The nationwide stop cancelled thousands of US flights, so Medellín–US routes are exposed, but check your own flight.

Can I change my flight for free? El Colombiano reports several airlines activated penalty-free date-change policies, without naming them. Ask your carrier directly.

Am I entitled to a refund if my US flight is cancelled? Under the DOT automatic refund rule, yes, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you do not accept the alternative offered.

When will flights return to normal? No firm date has been published. NBC reports Secretary Duffy expects recovery before Thanksgiving; Saturday still showed thousands of cancellations.

We will update this piece if airlines publish route-specific information.