Diverted to Kentucky: My flight and night after the FAA’s nationwide ground stop

The FAA grounded every flight in the country Friday afternoon, and I was in the air — probably over Texas somewhere — when it happened.

My afternoon plane from Phoenix to JFK ended up being diverted to Cincinnati, and I have ended up in a hotel in downtown Covington, Kentucky.

It’s my first time in Kentucky, and, considering the circunstances, I’m in a surprisingly good mood.

The Federal Aviation Administration ordered the nationwide ground stop about 4 p.m., citing “extraordinary circumstances” and safety. The transportation secretary’s office said a communication issue was affecting the regional centers that guide planes between airports, and the FAA called it a temporary telecommunications outage.

Federal authorities reported that there was no indication yet that it was any kind of attack. Hundreds of flights were diverted and many more haven’t taken off in what Homeland Security described as the first nationwide ground stop since January 2023 and the second since the Sept. 11 attacks.

The FAA has begun letting some flights depart (not mine) tonight, but cancellations were expected to stretch into Saturday.

I was flying home from Phoenix on Delta — Flight DL884 — after a trip I can only call a success. I was carrying out work for a writing project. I covered a lot of Arizona by car and came away with a lot more than I’d hoped for. With that kind of success in my pocket, I’m shrugging my shoulders so far over the current change of plans.

About two hours into my flight, the captain came on to say there were power problems affecting communication with air traffic control. JFK was filling up with planes, he told us, and nothing was leaving, so there might be no room for us to land. Cincinnati was a possibility. There were some groans on board, but nothing major.

Some 45 minutes later, with the plane still pointed toward New York as if nothing had changed, the captain came back on and made it official. We were landing in Cincinnati, and he couldn’t say whether we’d get a gate. Like anyone who has read the nightmare stories, I started picturing hours stuck on a tarmac.

We landed before 7 p.m. Then every phone on the plane lit up at once. Mine was full of messages from friends, my wife, my children, my sister, my mother and colleagues, all asking similar versions of the same two questions: Did your plane get in the air? and Are you ok?

My daughter’s text had arrived in the middle of the flight: “Are you okay? I’m going to throw up. Please just text anyone once you can.” A later one said she knew I was alive and had tried to call. My wife: “As soon as you can, let us know your condition. I hope you are ok. Love you.”

My sister’s was short but meaningful: “Love you,” with a red heart emoji. My mother let me know she was glad I was okay. My son, Dan, offered to drive to Cincinnati and bring me home to Long Island, a drive I’d guess at about ten hours. God bless him.

It was my daughter who steered me toward being practical: book a hotel now, rent a car for Saturday and drive home. The captain had told us to take all our belongings off the plane in case we didn’t reboard.

At the gate, the board said we’d depart at 7:30 p.m. I didn’t believe it. My daughter helped book a room for me before the local hotels filled up. The departure time slid to 8, then 8:30, and finally the flight it was determined that the flight wasn’t happening tonight at all.

Here’s the part I keep thinking about. I wasn’t nervous on that plane, and I wasn’t angry when we landed. When you’ve had a week like the one I just had, a detour feels like a footnote. I figured we’d land, and I’d sort it out.

I guess I’m a little concerned about my car languishing in offsite, longterm parking — and the accumulating fees — near Kennedy Airport.

And the experience is not over. Tomorrow, I rent a car and drive east, and I’ll report back on how far I get.

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Top: GLI executive editor Brian Harmon was in the air on a flight from Phoenix to Kennedy Airport when the FAA grounded hundreds of flights across the country on Friday. His flight was diverted to the Cincinnati airport (Photo: Sarah Willman from the Hotel Covington in Covington, Kentucky, which is near the airport).