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Trump Speaks for First Time on Nationwide Ground Stop: Blames Biden Administration for FAA 'Disaster,' Says Air Traffic System Uses 50-Year-Old Equipment, Urges Congress to Fund Upgrade in Full and Fast

Sunday, November 15, 2026 · White House · GSM News

U.S. President Donald Trump posted twice on Truth Social on Sunday morning, November 15, speaking publicly for the first time about the nationwide ground stop and the days of widespread flight disruption. He blamed the Biden administration for turning the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) into a disaster and called on Congress to fund the already-launched air traffic control upgrade in full, in a single appropriation, and to move fast.

In the posts, Trump wrote that the Biden administration had made the FAA a disaster, that the money had not been spent in the right places, and that an already aging system had been made worse. He said much of the equipment used in the U.S. air traffic control system is 50 years old.

Trump said the upgrade of the air traffic control system has already begun, but that the work requires Congress to appropriate the full amount at once, and to do it "fast." He also praised the FAA team, saying it has done a good job during the disruption.

The Associated Press fixed the president's remarks in a wire report on Sunday morning. It was the first time Trump himself has commented publicly on the air traffic control system since the nationwide ground stop began.

Related: Follow-up: U.S. Flight Disruptions Enter Third Day With 1,600 Sunday Cancellations; Duffy Says Fully Normal by Monday

Related: Follow-Up: Ground Stop Disruption Winds Down: Over 6,400 Saturday Flights Canceled, More Than 8,000 Delayed; FAA Expects Normal Operations Sunday Night

Related: Trump Urges Congress to Quickly Approve $30 Billion to Modernize Air Traffic Control; Schmidt Bill Introduced in Senate

(Source: Donald Trump on Truth Social)

Source: Donald Trump on Truth Social

Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 图:特朗普在安德鲁斯联合基地登上空军一号时挥手(资料图,2025年10月31日,白宫官方照片,公共领域)。 / Photo: President Donald Trump waves as he boards Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews (file photo, October 31, 2025). The White House, public domain

Story Timeline
  1. 2026-11-13FAA Orders Nationwide Ground Stop: All U.S. Departures Held After Air Traffic Control Communications Failure, First Nationwide Halt Since 2023
  2. 2026-11-13Follow-Up: Nationwide Ground Stop Still in Effect; Nearly 1,700 U.S. Flights Canceled and Delays Top 10,000 as Airlines Issue Waivers
  3. 2026-11-13Follow-Up: Eurocontrol Suspends U.S.-Bound Departures From Its 42 Member States at the FAA's Request
  4. 2026-11-13[Video] Follow-Up: FAA Lifts Nationwide Ground Stop After More Than Four Hours; Nearly 6,000 Friday Flights Canceled, Weekend Schedules Still Disrupted
  5. 2026-11-13Follow-Up: Two Cabinet Secretaries Brief at the White House on the Nationwide Ground Stop: No Evidence of a Cyberattack, Congress Urged to Fund Air Traffic Control Modernization
  6. 2026-11-13Oscar Winner Daniel Kaluuya and Tyriq Withers Stranded at Eugene Airport: Their Interview During the Nationwide Ground Stop Goes Viral
  7. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: More Than 2,500 U.S. Flights Canceled Saturday as Airlines Recover From Nationwide Ground Stop
  8. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: Canada Offered the FAA Full Assistance During the Nationwide Ground Stop, Including Taking U.S.-Bound Flights; Newsom Offers Thanks
  9. 2026-11-14Colorado State Football Holds Walkthrough on Airport Tarmac During Nationwide Ground Stop, Scene Goes Viral
  10. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: FAA Instrument-Flight Ground Stop on Nov. 13 Reached Ventura County's Camarillo and Oxnard Airports While Visual Flights Continued
  11. 2026-11-14[Video] Follow-Up: Transportation Secretary Duffy Holds Press Conference in Washington on Nationwide Ground Stop Response and Flight Recovery
  12. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: Duffy Says a Single Router Flooded the Air Traffic Network in the Nationwide Ground Stop; 17 of 22 Centers Affected, Over 5,000 Saturday Flights Canceled
  13. 2026-11-14Ole Miss at Oklahoma Football Game Moved to Sunday After FAA Ground Stop; Oklahoma AD Objects
  14. 2026-11-14Hoobastank, Simple Plan, The Used and LØLØ Perform Aboard a Southwest Flight That Beat the Nationwide Ground Stop, and Passenger Videos Go Viral
  15. 2026-11-14Louisville Airport Has Already Canceled 41 Flights by Morning of Nov. 14 as Nationwide Ground Stop Fallout Continues
  16. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: More Than 600 Flights Delayed and 293 Canceled at Los Angeles International Airport as Ground-Stop Fallout Continues Into Sunday
  17. 2026-11-14Texas Longhorns Flew by Charter to Louisiana Last Night, Play LSU on the Road Today
  18. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: Sky Harbor Still Reeling from Ground Stop; American Cancels 93 Flights on Nov. 14, Lawmaker Demands Duffy Testify
  19. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: New York Governor Hochul Demands Transportation Secretary Duffy Resign as Congressional Democrats Pursue Accountability for the Nationwide Ground Stop
  20. 2026-11-14Follow-Up: Ground Stop Disruption Winds Down: Over 6,400 Saturday Flights Canceled, More Than 8,000 Delayed; FAA Expects Normal Operations Sunday Night
  21. 2026-11-14[Video] Follow-Up: White House Traces Nationwide Ground Stop to 1980s-Era ATC Equipment as Duffy Urges $50 Billion Rebuild
  22. 2026-11-15Follow-up: U.S. Flight Disruptions Enter Third Day With 1,600 Sunday Cancellations; Duffy Says Fully Normal by Monday
  23. 2026-11-15Trump Speaks for First Time on Nationwide Ground Stop: Blames Biden Administration for FAA 'Disaster,' Says Air Traffic System Uses 50-Year-Old Equipment, Urges Congress to Fund Upgrade in Full and FastThis story
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