Friday, November 13, 2026, turned out to be an unusual day. The United States reported a nationwide halt to aircraft departures, while suspicious drones were spotted near a U.S. air base in the United Kingdom. And all of this is happening precisely on the day that American scientists jokingly designated as the "end of the world" 66 years ago, UNN writes.
Details
According to reports, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) imposed a temporary ban on departures due to a technical equipment failure. Aircraft were ordered to remain on the ground until further instructions. At the same time, there is currently no independent confirmation of the nationwide scale of the restrictions.
Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, the U.S. military reported suspicious drone activity near Lakenheath Air Base. Earlier, local residents reported hearing sirens. The U.S. Air Force assured that the incident had not affected personnel, aircraft, or infrastructure.
Why November 13, 2026, was called the date of the "end of the world"
What is most interesting is that this date appeared in a scientific publication as far back as 1960.
At the time, the journal Science published an article by physicist Heinz von Foerster and his colleagues titled "Doomsday: Friday, 13 November 2026."
The researchers analyzed global population growth rates and created a mathematical model that predicted the world's population would approach infinity precisely on November 13, 2026.
However, this was not a literal prediction of the apocalypse. The authors used a provocative title to draw attention to the problem of rapid population growth and the limitations of mathematical forecasting.
Over time, demographic trends changed, and the model itself did not come true.
Thus, despite the eerie coincidence of the date, the reports of aviation incidents and the 1960 scientific publication are in no way connected. But for Friday the 13th, the story turned out to be quite symbolic.