On November 11, 2026, the Federal Aviation Administration held 11 airports across the United States under 15 delay programmes, according to FAA data tracked by travelandtournews.com. Chicago O’Hare International experienced the worst delays with a peak maximum delay of 206 minutes.
Airports Affected and Programme Details
Eleven airports were subject to delay programmes including ground stops, ground delay programmes, and general arrival/departure delay information. Ground stop programmes, which hold departures bound for an airport on the ground at their origin, affected three airports: Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) due to thunderstorms for 1 hour 40 minutes, Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) for 40 minutes due to runway construction, and Teterboro Airport (TEB) for 20 minutes from airport volume.
Ground delay programmes, which meter arrivals by assigning later departure times, were active at three airports. Boston Logan International (BOS) experienced the longest ground delay programme lasting seven hours with a
peak maximum delay of 64 minutes caused by runway construction. San Francisco International (SFO) had a five-hour ground delay programme with peak maximum delay reaching 132 minutes due to low ceilings. ORD also had a brief ground delay programme lasting 20 minutes with a maximum 206-minute delay prompted by thunderstorms.
The remaining nine programmes provided general arrival and departure delay information. Delays ranged from 20 to 60 minutes with peak maximum delays mostly between 30 and 45 minutes. These programmes covered airports including Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA), Miami International (MIA), Harry Reid International (LAS), Chicago Midway International (MDW), San
Diego International (SAN), Dallas Love Field (DAL), Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA), and San Francisco International (SFO).
| Airport | FAA programme | Cause | Peak average delay | In force (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) | Ground Stop Programs | thunderstorms | – | 19:20 to 21:00 (1 hour 40 minutes) |
| Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) | Ground Stop Programs | runway construction | – | 02:40 to 03:20 (40 minutes) |
| TEB | Ground Stop Programs | airport volume | – | 19:20 to 19:40 (20 minutes) |
| San Francisco International (SFO) | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings | 62 min | 14:00 to 19:00 (5 hours) |
| Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) | Ground Delay Programs | thunderstorms | 51 min | 21:20 to 21:20 (20 minutes) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Delay Programs | runway construction | 20 min | 15:20 to 22:20 (7 hours) |
| Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VIPM:VIP Movement | 31 min | 18:00 to 18:00 (20 minutes) |
| Miami International (MIA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | TM Initiatives:MIT:VOL | 16 min | 16:00 to 17:00 (1 hour) |
| Harry Reid International (LAS) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | OTHER: | 16 min | 00:00 to 00:00 (20 minutes) |
| Chicago Midway International (MDW) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VOL:Compacted Demand | 16 min | 00:00 to 00:00 (20 minutes) |
| Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | TM Initiatives:MIT:WX | 16 min | 14:00 to 14:00 (20 minutes) |
| San Diego International (SAN) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VOL:Compacted Demand | 16 min | 15:20 to 15:20 (20 minutes) |
| Dallas Love Field (DAL) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VOL:Volume | 16 min | 16:40 to 16:40 (20 minutes) |
| Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | RWY:Construction | 16 min | 17:00 to 17:00 (20 minutes) |
Runway Construction and Weather Were Primary Causes
Runway construction was the leading cause driving 25 of the delay samples. Low ceilings caused 16 samples, making it the second most frequent factor, followed by thunderstorms which accounted for 7 delay samples. Additional causes included traffic management initiatives related to volume (TM Initiatives:MIT:VOL) producing 4 delay samples and compacted demand (VOL:Compacted Demand) linked to 2 delay samples.
Specific weather-related delays were reflected mostly at ORD, SEA, and SFO. Thunderstorms impacted ORD’s ground stop and ground delay programmes. Low ceilings caused significant delays at SFO.
Seattle also faced runway construction delays both in ground stop and general delay programmes.
Comparison with Previous Day and Weekly Average
This total of 11 airports affected and 15 delay programmes exceeds the previous day’s figures, which recorded 7 airports affected and 10 programmes. The number of airports held also slightly surpasses the recent seven-day average of 10.3 airports affected daily. The overall count of delay programmes is 4 higher than the day before. However, this day is not the worst within the weekly 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 68 samples taken between 00:00 and 22:20 UTC on 2026-11-11. 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.
