On September 28, 2026, the FAA held 15 US airports under 27 delay programmes according to data aggregated from 63 polls throughout the day. Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas (LAS) was the worst-hit airport, experiencing ground stop programmes due to wind and thunderstorms over a four-hour period.
Overview of Affected Airports and Programmes
The delay programmes were spread across 15 airports including Boston (BOS), Dallas Love Field (DAL), Denver (DEN), Newark (EWR), Westchester County (HPN), JFK, Las Vegas (LAS), LaGuardia (LGA), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Philadelphia (PHL), Phoenix (PHX), San Diego (SAN), Seattle-Tacoma (SEA), San Francisco (SFO), and Teterboro (TEB).
Among the 27 total programmes, 6 were ground stop programmes, 8 were ground delay programmes, and 13 covered general arrival and departure delay information.
Ground stop programmes halt departures bound for an airport on the ground at their origin, while ground delay programmes meter arrivals by assigning later departure times.
Harry Reid International in
Las Vegas had two overlapping ground stop and ground delay programmes linked to wind and thunderstorms, with the ground stop lasting four hours from 18:40 to 22:40 UTC and the ground delay lasting one hour from 21:40 to 22:40 UTC.
Boston Logan experienced the longest ground delay programme over 22 hours and 40 minutes from midnight to 22:40 UTC, caused by wind and runway construction, reaching a peak average delay of 314 minutes and a maximum of 873 minutes.
LaGuardia also faced a prolonged ground delay programme of 22 hours and 40 minutes, driven by wind and low ceilings with
a peak average delay of 139 minutes.
San Diego’s 22-hour and 40-minute ground delay programme was attributed to airport volume, while Seattle-Tacoma faced a 4-hour and 40-minute ground delay programme due to runway construction.
| Airport | FAA programme | Cause | Peak average delay | In force (UTC) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Reid International (LAS) | Ground Stop Programs | wind; thunderstorms | – | 18:40 to 22:40 (4 hours) |
| TEB | Ground Stop Programs | airspace volume; low ceilings | – | 18:40 to 21:00 (2 hours 20 minutes) |
| Denver International (DEN) | Ground Stop Programs | WIND; wind | – | 00:20 to 02:20 (2 hours) |
| Philadelphia International (PHL) | Ground Stop Programs | low ceilings | – | 12:40 to 13:00 (20 minutes) |
| LaGuardia (LGA) | Ground Stop Programs | low ceilings | – | 18:00 to 18:20 (20 minutes) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Stop Programs | runway construction | – | 22:20 to 22:40 (20 minutes) |
| Boston Logan International (BOS) | Ground Delay Programs | wind; runway construction | 314 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| LaGuardia (LGA) | Ground Delay Programs | wind; low ceilings | 139 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| San Francisco International (SFO) | Ground Delay Programs | low ceilings | 75 min | 00:00 to 19:20 (19 hours 20 minutes) |
| Harry Reid International (LAS) | Ground Delay Programs | wind | 72 min | 21:40 to 22:40 (1 hour) |
| Philadelphia International (PHL) | Ground Delay Programs | wind | 48 min | 00:00 to 00:00 (20 minutes) |
| Newark Liberty International (EWR) | Ground Delay Programs | wind | 41 min | 00:00 to 01:40 (1 hour 40 minutes) |
| San Diego International (SAN) | Ground Delay Programs | airport volume | 33 min | 00:00 to 22:40 (22 hours 40 minutes) |
| Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) | Ground Delay Programs | runway construction | 33 min | 00:00 to 04:40 (4 hours 40 minutes) |
Primary Causes Behind Delay Programmes
The FAA identified several causes for the delay programmes. The most frequent were low ceilings (58 mentions), runway construction (47), and airport volume (41), followed by wind (36) and specific mentions of low ceilings under weather notations (25).
Wind and thunderstorms were particularly impactful at Las Vegas, triggering a ground stop programme that lasted for four hours. Boston’s wind and runway construction caused the longest-lasting ground
delay, while LaGuardia’s combination of wind and low ceilings also produced substantial delays.
Other causes across airports included VIP movements and disabled aircraft at Chicago O’Hare, thunderstorm-related disruptions at Dallas Love Field and Phoenix Sky Harbor, and operational runway changes at Las Vegas.
Comparing with Previous Day and Weekly Averages
Compared with the previous day, the number of programmes decreased from 30 to 27, a change of minus 2. The number of airports affected remained steady at 15, matching the recent seven-day average of 15.4.
Today was not the worst day in the recent tracking window regarding airport impact or total programmes.
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 63 samples taken between 00:00 and 22:40 UTC on 2026-09-28. 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.
