Sacramento airport travelers left confused, concerned after nationwide ground stop of flights

A chaotic afternoon unfolded on Friday at Sacramento International Airport as passengers were deboarded from planes after the Federal Aviation Administration issued an hours-long nationwide ground stop.

The ground stop was lifted at roughly 5:15 p.m., according to U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. 

According to flight tracking website FlightRadar24, the order forced thousands of flight delays and cancellations during the hours it was active — leaving many travelers unsure of what to do.

Much of the confusion was playing out at the baggage claim area as people waited for their bags to be taken off of grounded planes.

"I'm hoping it is not something more serious," Vanessa Romero, who was trying to fly back to Los Angeles, said.  

Passengers were seen calling family members, letting them know they wouldn't be flying home any time soon. Others chose to leave the airport altogether in lieu of waiting for flights to resume.

The UC Davis football team's play-by-play announcer Scott Marsh shared that the team was also impacted by the ground stop.

The University of the Pacific men's basketball team was additionally forced to postpone its game against Air Force tomorrow due to the order.

Airport officials referred requests for information to the FAA. With little information shared by officials, passengers shared concern over what caused the ground stop.

"It's scary because the last time something this major happened was 9/11," said Mia Lamb, who was also attempting to fly to Los Angeles.

The last time a nationwide ground stop was ordered was in 2023, caused by an outage in the FAA's flight personnel alert system.