Is there a ground stop at DEN today?
Live FAA delay status for Denver International Airport (KDEN, Denver, CO): ground stops, ground delay programs and delays right now, what the FAA has listed for DEN recently, and how often flights here actually run late.
No: the FAA is not reporting a ground stop at DEN right now.
FAA NAS Status lists no ground stop, ground delay program, or delay event for Denver Intl. Checked Sep 22, 2026 · 2032Z (2:32 PM MDT); this page refreshes about every two minutes.
Recent FAA events at DEN
Ground stops and delay programs the FAA has listed for DEN in the last 90 days, from ATIS Alerts' own log of FAA NAS Status.
- Arrival DelaysSep 20, 2026 · 0131Z (7:31 PM MDT)lasted 3h 27m · zdv / wx:thunderstorms · avg delay 53 min
- Ground Delay ProgramSep 19, 2026 · 2049Z (2:49 PM MDT)lasted 3h 5m · thunderstorms · avg delay 33 min
- Ground StopSep 19, 2026 · 1302Z (7:02 AM MDT)lasted 43 min · staffing
- Departure DelaysSep 8, 2026 · 0045Z (6:45 PM MDT)lasted 10 min · wx:thunderstorms · avg delay 23 min
Durations are the time the FAA kept the event listed. Log complete from 2026-09-22; older rows are the last event of each type seen by the ATIS Alerts bot since 2026-07-22.
How often is DEN delayed?
Airline on-time performance at DEN, Jun 2025 to May 2026, from the US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
318,657 scheduled airline arrivals and 318,679 departures in the period. Best month: Nov 2025 (85.4% on time); worst: Jul 2025 (67.8%). 37% of arrival delay minutes were charged to weather or the National Airspace System, the categories a ground stop or ground delay program falls under.
On-time arrivals by month
Bar = share of arrivals within 15 minutes of schedule; largest month had 29,433 arrivals.
What caused the delays
- 33%Late-arriving aircraft
- 31%Airline (crew, maintenance, ground handling)
- 30%National Airspace System (ATC, volume, non-extreme weather)
- 6%Extreme weather
- 0%Security
Shares of delay minutes on arrivals 15+ minutes late, as reported by the carriers to the DOT.
Source: BTS Airline On-Time Performance (reporting carriers; regional, cargo, and general aviation flights are not included). Published about two months after each month ends.
Weather at KDEN right now
Weather drives most ground stops: thunderstorms, low ceilings, wind and snow.
METAR KDEN 221953Z VRB05KT 10SM FEW090 FEW140 FEW220 27/05 A3010 RMK AO2 SLP121 T02720050
What a ground stop at DEN means
When the FAA issues a ground stop for Denver Intl, aircraft headed there are held at their departure airports until it lifts; flights already airborne continue, hold, or divert. It is the FAA's most severe traffic-management step short of closing the airport, and it is usually issued in 30 to 90 minute increments that get extended while the cause persists, then often converted into a ground delay program as conditions improve.
Passengers:your aircraft is probably sitting at its origin; the airline's "delayed" status usually resolves in waves after the stop lifts. Pilots: a stop at DEN ripples into the satellite airports and the whole TRACON; check the national board for programs at your alternate.
Terminology: ground stops explained · GDPs and EDCTs explained
Active FAA events nearby
Other airports in Colorado with a delay event right now.
DEN ground stop FAQ
How do I know if DEN has a ground stop right now?
The banner at the top of this page reads the FAA's NAS Status feed about every two minutes. A red banner means the FAA currently lists a ground stop for Denver Intl; green means it does not. The official source is nasstatus.faa.gov.
How long do ground stops at DEN last?
The ground stops we have recorded at DEN stayed listed for about 45 minutes on average. Nationally, most stops run 30 to 90 minutes per issuance, but a stalled line of storms can keep one extended for hours.
Does a ground stop mean my flight is cancelled?
No. It means departures to DENare held, not cancelled. Airlines cancel on their own when the backlog cannot be recovered, so watch your carrier's updates alongside this page.
⚠️ Informational only. FAA NAS Status is the authoritative source for delay programs; your airline or dispatch governs your flight. ATIS Alerts is not affiliated with the FAA.