American Airlines has grounded all of its flights

Travelers across the United States have faced disruptions on Christmas Eve as American Airlines grounded all its flights due to a technical issue.

American Airlines grounded all of its flights on Christmas Eve. Credit: J. David Ake / Getty

The airline confirmed the problem and said it was working urgently to resolve it, BBC News reports.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a “nationwide groundstop” for the airline, affecting all airports nationwide.

A History of Technical Trouble

This is not the first time American Airlines has faced widespread issues. In July, the airline grounded all its flights for much of the day due to an IT crash caused by a faulty software update from cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike.

That incident also affected other airlines, including Delta, resulting in more than 42,000 delayed flights and over 4,700 cancellations globally.

Glitch Appears To Be Resolved

Thankfully, the latest glitch was reportedly resolved in about an hour. Passengers began taking to social media to report on the progress being made, with boarding resuming at airports across the country.

At Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, a gate agent announced to passengers over the intercom: “The system is slowly coming back.”

Meanwhile, a Washington Post reporter stranded on the tarmac at Washington, D.C., shared that their pilot informed passengers the outage had been resolved and flights would soon be airborne, per BBC News.

At Chicago O’Hare International Airport, Ryan Ewing, founder of aviation insights site AirlineGeeks.com, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that an Admirals Club agent announced the system was “back up,” directing passengers to proceed to their gates.

Recovery in Progress

While the FAA has yet to report significant delays at major airports, the disruption during one of the busiest travel days of the year has left many travelers scrambling to catch up.

As passengers reboard and flights resume, the ripple effects of the hour-long groundstop are likely to linger, especially during the holiday rush. Travelers are advised to check with their airline for updates and allow extra time for their journeys.