A nationwide FAA ground stop issued at 3:54 p.m. ET Friday amid a temporary telecommunications outage disrupted thousands of U.S. flights, creating potential travel problems for cruise passengers headed to Florida ports.
The FAA said flights were halted out of caution and that international flights would be handled case by case. Flights already in progress were allowed to continue to their next destination, but not onward on connecting itineraries. The agency said the cause had not been identified; officials said the incident was not believed to be malicious, though the investigation was continuing.
As of 8 p.m. ET Friday, FlightAware listed more than 9,800 U.S. flight delays and more than 5,000 cancellations, according to Cruise Hive. At Miami International Airport, 253 flights were delayed and 72 canceled. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport had 193 delays and 33 cancellations, while Orlando International Airport had 232 delays and 60 cancellations.
Those airports serve three of Florida's busiest cruise areas. Seven ships were scheduled in PortMiami on Saturday, November 14, along with four at Port Everglades and six at Port Canaveral.
No cruise line had announced a departure-time change because of the ground stop. Cruise Hive noted that cruise lines do not typically delay sailings for flight disruptions, meaning booked guests should continue trying to reach their terminals as planned. Miami International Airport advised travelers to check directly with their airlines before heading to the airport.
Passengers leaving ships over the weekend could also face disruptions to post-cruise flights. Cruise Hive reported that some airlines were beginning to offer travel waivers, with policies varying by carrier, and that clearing the backlog could take several days after the ground stop ends.
