On September 25, 2026, the FAA held 15 US airports under a total of 23 delay programmes, according to FAA data tracked by travelandtournews.com. LaGuardia Airport (LGA) was the worst affected, experiencing peak delays reaching up to 263 minutes.
FAA Delay Programmes at 15 Airports and Their Duration
The 23 delay programmes recorded fall into three categories: four Ground Stop Programs, eight Ground Delay Programs, and 11 General Arrival/Departure Delay Info programmes. Ground stops hold departures bound for an airport on the ground at their origin, while ground delay programmes meter arrivals by assigning later departure times.
Ground Stop Programs were in place at LaGuardia (LGA) for 40 minutes due to airport volume and wind, and at Los Angeles International (LAX) for 20 minutes caused by thunderstorms. Austin (AUS) experienced a 20-minute ground stop due to runway construction, while Denver International (DEN) had a 20-minute ground stop also
caused by thunderstorms.
Ground Delay Programs lasted longest at Denver International (DEN) and San Diego International (SAN), each persisting for 22 hours and 40 minutes. DEN’s delays stemmed from a combination of other causes and thunderstorms, while SAN’s were due to airport volume. LaGuardia endured an 8-hour ground delay programme with wind as the sole cause, reaching a peak average delay of 162 minutes.
San Francisco International (SFO) had the highest ground delay programme sample count with 29, operating for 9 hours and 20 minutes, with low ceilings and runway construction as reasons. Boston Logan (BOS) had an early ground
delay lasting 40 minutes due to runway construction, with peak delays at 318 minutes.
Other ground delay programmes included John F. Kennedy International (JFK) with 5 hours of wind-related delays, Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) with 3 hours 40 minutes due to runway construction, and Newark Liberty International (EWR) with 20 minutes caused by airport volume.
| Airport | FAA programme | Cause | Peak average delay | In force (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LaGuardia (LGA) | Ground Stop Programs | airport volume; wind | – | 13:40 to 14:20 (40 minutes) |
| Los Angeles International (LAX) | Ground Stop Programs | thunderstorms | – | 00:00 to 00:20 (20 minutes) |
| AUS | Ground Stop Programs | runway construction | – | 18:00 to 18:20 (20 minutes) |
| Denver International (DEN) | Ground Stop Programs | thunderstorms | – | 22:20 to 22:40 (20 minutes) |
| LaGuardia (LGA) | Ground Delay Programs | wind | 162 min | 14:40 to 22:40 (8 hours) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Delay Programs | runway construction | 118 min | 00:00 to 00:40 (40 minutes) |
| John F. Kennedy International (JFK) | Ground Delay Programs | wind | 60 min | 17:40 to 22:40 (5 hours) |
| Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) | Ground Delay Programs | runway construction | 47 min | 00:00 to 03:40 (3 hours 40 minutes) |
| San Francisco International (SFO) | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings; runway construction | 44 min | 13:20 to 22:40 (9 hours 20 minutes) |
| Denver International (DEN) | Ground Delay Programs | other; thunderstorms | 42 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| San Diego International (SAN) | Ground Delay Programs | airport volume | 41 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| Newark Liberty International (EWR) | Ground Delay Programs | airport volume | 35 min | 00:00 to 00:20 (20 minutes) |
| LaGuardia (LGA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | WX:Wind | 31 min | 13:20 to 19:20 (6 hours) |
| San Diego International (SAN) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VOL:Volume | 31 min | 03:00 to 08:40 (5 hours 40 minutes) |
Wind and Airport Volume Drove the Most Delay Programmes
The FAA cited 43 delay programmes affected by wind—the top cause—and 33 programmes linked to airport volume. Runway construction accounted for 25 programmes, while low ceilings caused 21 programmes. Thunderstorms and other causes were less frequent but contributed notably, particularly at Denver and Los Angeles airports.
Ground Stop Programs were mostly triggered by wind, airport volume, thunderstorms, and runway construction. Ground Delay Programs were predominantly driven by wind, runway construction, airport volume, and low ceilings. General Arrival/Departure Delay Info programmes repeated themes of volume, construction, and weather phenomena such as wind and thunderstorms.
September 25 Programmes Slightly Up from Yesterday but Below Weekly Average
Compared with the previous day, September 25 saw an increase of one airport affected (15 versus 14) and two more delay programmes (23 versus 21). The number of airports under delay programmes remains slightly below the seven-day average of 16.4 airports. This day was not the worst in the tracking period.
Methodology. travelandtournews.com
samples the FAA’s National Airspace System status feed every 20 minutes throughout the US operating day and aggregates the result. This report is built from 64 samples taken between 00:00 and 22:40 UTC on 2026-09-25. Durations are the observed window between the first and last sample in which a programme was in force, so a programme’s true length may be slightly longer than shown. Ground stops, ground delay programmes, airport closures and general delays are all published by the FAA in real time; the daily aggregation is ours.
