Johnson says 'we don't really need any investigation' on FAA ground stop

This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. End of dialog window. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said there is no need for an investigation into the ground stop issued by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Friday, instead highlighting the need for “investment.” “We don’t really need any investigation … we need further investment,” Johnson said during an interview with Fox News’s Saturday in America. “I mean, some of this equipment dates back to the eighties so it’s gotta be updated and that’s our responsibility. We’re gonna work to get it done.” The FAA issued the nationwide ground stop around 4 p.m. EST on Friday. The rare protocol was in place for over four hours. The agency’s last widespread stoppage, which lasted approximately 90 minutes, was in January 2023. The FAA lifted the stop at around 8:15 p.m., Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed during a White House press briefing Friday night. Duffy attributed the incident to an overload of data on routers, with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin adding the “public was never in danger in this process.” During the briefing, the officials called for a multi-billion-dollar investment into updating the U.S.’s “incredibly old” air traffic control systems. “What we have is an incredibly old air traffic control system,” Duffy said during the Friday night briefing. “Let’s not do a patchwork, a fix to a system that’s critical for every single family.” “I want $50 billion,” he said. Duffy in September asked Congress for $30 billion to fund new technology, control towers and airport improvements across the country. In a press briefing Saturday morning, Duffy said a telecommunications line switch by a contractor may have started Friday’s FAA ground stoppage. He noted that an older copper wire was being replaced by a new fiber cable by contractor L3Harris. More than 4,500 flights within, into or out of the U.S. were delayed as of Saturday afternoon with over 5,000 canceled, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. Total reported delays on Saturday crossed 15,000. Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.