'The worst is behind us': Air travel fully resumes after nationwide ground stop, FAA says

Air travel was "back at full operations" on Saturday morning as airlines recovered from a nationwide Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ground stop that paused U.S. departures for more than four hours, according to U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Bryan Bedford, who heads the FAA, said "the situation remained stable" as of 11 a.m. EST. "I do think the worst is behind us, but we still have a fair amount of recovery ahead of us," Bedford said, adding that some travelers would still likely face cancellations and delays. The FAA lifted the order on Friday around 8:15 p.m. EST after communications problems impacted air route traffic control centers. Videos and photos circling online showed travelers stranded at airports. More than 2,500 flights within, into, or out of the U.S. had been canceled on Saturday, with hundreds more delayed, according to FlightAware data. The effects could continue for days as airlines rearrange schedules and reposition planes and staff. READ MORE: https://katu.com/news/nation-world/flight-disruptions-persist-as-airlines-recover-from-nationwide-faa-ground-stop-modern-skies-act-airplanes-planes-travelers-passengers-delays-cancellations-departures-airports-air-traffic-control-outage-pilots-congress-funding-duffy-mullin-trump _______________ Stay up to date with our social media: KATU on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katunews KATU on Twitter: https://twitter.com/KATUNews Subscribe to KATU on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmDTerxNU_gvCWLkIPkqghA/?sub_confirmation=1 Daily News Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFtHM_AbvnEUkd_YRTlZpGKkbczT5w062 For more information, visit https://katu.com/ Have a news tip? Send it directly to us: Email us: newstips@katu.com Call the Newsroom: 503.231.4222 KATU is a OR based station and a ABC Television affiliate owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country today. #KATU #Katu2abc #Portland #Oregon #localnews #oregonnews