On October 26, 2026, the FAA held 13 airports across the United States under 15 delay programmes, according to FAA data tracked by travelandtournews.com. San Francisco International Airport (SFO) was the worst-hit airport with a peak maximum delay of 142 minutes reported during ground delay programmes involving low ceilings.
Airports Under FAA Delay Programmes and Their Durations
Of the 13 affected airports, the FAA implemented one ground stop programme and four ground delay programmes—the rest were general arrival/departure delay reports. 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.
San Francisco International executed a ground stop programme for 40 minutes from 02:40 to 03:20 UTC with no delay minutes recorded and a subsequent ground delay programme lasting 5 hours and 40 minutes from 13:00 to 18:40 UTC due to low ceilings, peaking at an average 58-minute delay and a maximum delay
of 142 minutes.
Boston Logan International (BOS) faced a 9-hour ground delay programme caused by runway construction from 11:40 to 20:40 UTC, with delays peaking at an average of 17 minutes and a maximum of 114 minutes. San Diego International (SAN) had a 5-hour and 40-minute ground delay programme attributed to airspace volume between 14:20 and 20:00 UTC, with peak average and maximum delays of 28 and 68 minutes, respectively.
Other airports with ground delay programmes included Austin (AUS), which had a brief 20-minute delay linked to runway construction with peak delays of 24 and 72 minutes; Miami International (MIA),
under a general arrival/departure delay info programme for 15 hours and 40 minutes due to runway construction; and others including LaGuardia (LGA), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Orlando (MCO), Phoenix (PHX), Eagle County (EGE), and Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), each with shorter duration general delay programs linked to causes such as weather, volume, staffing, and an aircraft emergency.
| Airport | FAA programme | Cause | Peak average delay | In force (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco International (SFO) | Ground Stop Programs | other | – | 02:40 to 03:20 (40 minutes) |
| San Francisco International (SFO) | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings | 58 min | 13:00 to 18:40 (5 hours 40 minutes) |
| San Diego International (SAN) | Ground Delay Programs | airspace volume | 28 min | 14:20 to 20:00 (5 hours 40 minutes) |
| AUS | Ground Delay Programs | runway construction | 24 min | 00:00 to 00:00 (20 minutes) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Delay Programs | runway construction | 17 min | 11:40 to 20:40 (9 hours) |
| TEB | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | TM Initiatives:DSP: INDIVIDUAL RELEASES | 61 min | 15:40 to 20:00 (4 hours 20 minutes) |
| Miami International (MIA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | RWY:Construction | 46 min | 00:00 to 15:40 (15 hours 40 minutes) |
| EGE | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | ZDV / WX:Low Ceilings | 46 min | 14:40 to 17:20 (2 hours 40 minutes) |
| LaGuardia (LGA) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | TM Initiatives:Metering:VOL | 31 min | 13:20 to 13:20 (20 minutes) |
| Harry Reid International (LAS) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | STAFF:Staffing; OTHER:INDIVIDUAL RELEASES | 16 min | 01:40 to 19:20 (17 hours 40 minutes) |
| Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VOL:Volume; WX:Low Ceilings | 16 min | 12:40 to 14:40 (2 hours) |
| San Francisco International (SFO) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | WX:Low Ceilings | 16 min | 16:20 to 16:40 (20 minutes) |
| Phoenix Sky Harbor International (PHX) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | VOL:Multi-taxi | 16 min | 18:00 to 18:00 (20 minutes) |
| Orlando International (MCO) | General Arrival/Departure Delay Info | TM Initiatives:MIT:WX | 16 min | 22:00 to 22:20 (20 minutes) |
Dominant Reasons Behind Delay Programmes
The FAA stated runway construction as the leading cause driving delay programmes today, appearing in 29 samples. Low ceilings and airspace volume each accounted for 18 samples, representing significant contributors to delays. Traffic management initiatives related to individual releases appeared 14 times, while runway construction
was also separately noted in eight more samples under different coding.
Other causes included staffing shortages and an aircraft emergency, documented particularly at Harry Reid International (LAS) with a lengthy 17 hours and 40 minutes general delay, and Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) for a brief 20-minute delay due to an aircraft emergency.
Comparison to Recent Delay Trends
Today’s figures indicate an increase over recent days. The 13 airports affected and 15 total delay programmes represent a rise of three airports and four programmes compared to yesterday when 10 airports and 11 programmes were reported. Compared to the seven-day average of 11.3 airports affected and just over
11 programmes, today’s activity is above typical levels, though not the highest within the 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 2026-10-26. 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.
