On October 5, 2026, the FAA implemented 22 delay programs affecting 17 airports across the United States. The airport facing the worst delays was Harry Reid International (LAS), where peak delays reached 155 minutes under a ground delay program.
FAA Delay Programs at 17 Airports, Ranging from Ground Stops to Metered Arrivals
The FAA’s delay programs on this date included 5 ground stop programs, 7 ground delay programs, and 10 general arrival/departure delay notices. A ground stop holds departures bound for an airport on the ground at their origin, preventing them from flying until the stop is lifted. Ground delay programs meter arrivals by assigning later departure times to flights, spacing traffic to manage airport capacity.
Ground stop programs were recorded at five airports: Harry Reid International (LAS) for 40 minutes citing staffing shortages; Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) for 20 minutes due to an equipment outage; Denver International (DEN) for 20 minutes
due to runway construction; Boston Logan International (BOS) for 20 minutes from runway construction; and Toronto Pearson International (YYZ) for 20 minutes driven by wind conditions.
Ground delay programs persisted longest at Boston Logan International (BOS), running nearly 23 hours (22 hours 40 minutes), with peak average delays reaching 179 minutes and maximum delays recorded at 1439 minutes. The causes listed were low ceilings, wind, and ongoing runway construction. San Diego International (SAN) experienced ground delays also lasting 22 hours 40 minutes, attributed to airport volume, with peak average delays of 44 minutes and maximum delays peaking at 91 minutes.
Additional ground delay programs included Philadelphia International (PHL) with low ceilings for 1 hour 40 minutes, Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) with low visibility lasting 3 hours 20 minutes, and LaGuardia (LGA) with wind-related general arrival/departure delay info lasting 2 hours 20 minutes. Other airports with programs ranged from short durations of 20 minutes to several hours, with various causes outlined.
| Airport | FAA programme | Cause | Peak average delay | In force (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Reid International (LAS) | Ground Stop Programs | STAFFING | – | 05:00 to 05:40 (40 minutes) |
| Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) | Ground Stop Programs | equipment outage | – | 12:20 to 12:20 (20 minutes) |
| Denver International (DEN) | Ground Stop Programs | runway construction | – | 14:40 to 15:00 (20 minutes) |
| YYZ | Ground Stop Programs | wind | – | 19:20 to 19:20 (20 minutes) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Stop Programs | runway construction | – | 20:00 to 20:00 (20 minutes) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings; wind; runway construction | 179 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| Philadelphia International (PHL) | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings | 82 min | 00:00 to 01:40 (1 hour 40 minutes) |
| YVR | Ground Delay Programs | low visibility | 75 min | 15:40 to 19:00 (3 hours 20 minutes) |
| AUS | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings | 66 min | 00:00 to 00:20 (20 minutes) |
| YUL | Ground Delay Programs | other | 57 min | 17:00 to 22:40 (5 hours 40 minutes) |
| Harry Reid International (LAS) | Ground Delay Programs | other | 53 min | 19:40 to 22:40 (3 hours) |
| San Diego International (SAN) | Ground Delay Programs | airport volume | 44 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| LaGuardia (LGA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | WX:Wind | 46 min | 20:20 to 22:40 (2 hours 20 minutes) |
| Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | WX:Low Visibility | 31 min | 15:00 to 20:20 (5 hours 20 minutes) |
The longest single program duration was the ground delay program at Boston Logan International (BOS), which ran for 1,360 minutes (22 hours 40 minutes).
Weather and Volume Drove Most Delay Programs, Staffing Also a Factor
The FAA’s stated reasons for delay programs on October 5 fell into several categories. The leading cause was airport volume, driving 36 program instances. Weather factors including wind and low ceilings contributed to 46 delay occurrences combined—26 wind-related and 20 for
low ceilings. Runway construction accounted for 11 delay programs. Staffing shortages caused the ground stop at LAS, while other reasons labeled simply as “other” were the second most frequent cause with 28 instances.
Some airports reported specific reasons such as low visibility at YVR, equipment outages at ATL, and VIP movement noted at Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA). Maintenance on runways was cited in Philadelphia International (PHL) and Teterboro (TEB). JFK reported compacted demand and wind, while Newark Liberty International (EWR) indicated weather-related traffic management initiatives.
Comparison with Previous Day and Weekly Average
Compared to the previous day, October 4, which saw 13 airports affected by 15
programs, October 5 recorded an increase with four more airports and seven additional programs. Against the seven-day average of 13.6 airports affected, this day’s activity was higher, involving 17 airports. However, October 5 was not the worst day during the recent tracking window.
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 69 samples taken between 00:00 and 22:40 UTC on 2026-10-05. 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.
