US airports with the most FAA ground stops
LaGuardia (LGA) had more FAA ground stops than any other US airport in the last 12 months (Oct 24, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026): 191. Chicago O'Hare Intl (ORD) with 155 and Newark Liberty Intl (EWR) with 152 came next. In all, the FAA Command Center issued 2,276 ground stops at 98 US airports, most often for thunderstorms (46%).
A ground stop holds every flight bound for an airport at its departure airport until the FAA lifts it. This ranking counts each one the FAA Command Center issued from Oct 24, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026, with extensions folded into the stop they extend, and is rebuilt every day. For today's stops, see the live FAA delay board.
Top 50 airports by ground stops
| # | Airport | Ground stops | Typical stop | Delay programs | Days affected | Most common cause |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LaGuardia (LGA)New York, NY | 191 | 1 h 18 min | 94 | 149 | thunderstorms |
| 2 | Chicago O'Hare Intl (ORD)Chicago, IL | 155 | 1 h 22 min | 76 | 93 | thunderstorms |
| 3 | Newark Liberty Intl (EWR)Newark, NJ | 152 | 1 h 18 min | 104 | 141 | thunderstorms |
| 4 | Denver Intl (DEN)Denver, CO | 122 | 1 h 19 min | 55 | 104 | thunderstorms |
| 5 | Teterboro (TEB)Teterboro, NJ | 108 | 1 h 17 min | 30 | 84 | thunderstorms |
| 6 | Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA)Washington, DC | 105 | 1 h 30 min | 90 | 118 | thunderstorms |
| 7 | Dallas Fort Worth Intl (DFW)Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | 96 | 1 h 33 min | 40 | 70 | thunderstorms |
| 8 | John F. Kennedy Intl (JFK)New York, NY | 88 | 1 h 41 min | 76 | 93 | thunderstorms |
| 9 | Orlando Intl (MCO)Orlando, FL | 78 | 1 h 28 min | 10 | 66 | thunderstorms |
| 10 | San Francisco Intl (SFO)San Francisco, CA | 76 | 1 h 16 min | 261 | 217 | other or unspecified |
| 11 | Boston Logan Intl (BOS)Boston, MA | 75 | 1 h 18 min | 119 | 133 | thunderstorms |
| 12 | Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta Intl (ATL)Atlanta, GA | 72 | 1 h 27 min | 24 | 58 | thunderstorms |
| 13 | Austin Bergstrom Intl (AUS)Austin, TX | 65 | 1 h 4 min | 27 | 70 | thunderstorms |
| 14 | George Bush Intercontinental (IAH)Houston, TX | 63 | 1 h 15 min | 26 | 52 | thunderstorms |
| 15 | Washington Dulles Intl (IAD)Dulles, VA | 57 | 1 h 28 min | 6 | 48 | thunderstorms |
| 16 | Philadelphia Intl (PHL)Philadelphia, PA | 53 | 1 h 28 min | 42 | 55 | thunderstorms |
| 17 | Harry Reid Intl (LAS)Las Vegas, NV | 52 | 1 h 12 min | 58 | 73 | wind |
| 18 | San Diego Intl (SAN)San Diego, CA | 45 | 1 h 13 min | 125 | 129 | traffic volume |
| 18 | Charlotte Douglas Intl (CLT)Charlotte, NC | 45 | 1 h 2 min | 2 | 36 | thunderstorms |
| 20 | Westchester County (HPN)White Plains, NY | 42 | 1 h 9 min | 7 | 34 | thunderstorms |
| 21 | Baltimore/Washington Intl Thurgood Marshall (BWI)Baltimore, MD | 41 | 2 h 57 min | 2 | 37 | thunderstorms |
| 22 | Miami Intl (MIA)Miami, FL | 32 | 1 h 26 min | 13 | 31 | thunderstorms |
| 22 | Dallas Love Field (DAL)Dallas, TX | 32 | 1 h 39 min | 8 | 30 | thunderstorms |
| 24 | William P. Hobby (HOU)Houston, TX | 31 | 1 h 8 min | 8 | 33 | thunderstorms |
| 25 | Nashville Intl (BNA)Nashville, TN | 29 | 1 h 19 min | 15 | 36 | controller staffing |
| 26 | Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl (PHX)Phoenix, AZ | 27 | 1 h 14 min | 21 | 39 | thunderstorms |
| 26 | Chicago Midway Intl (MDW)Chicago, IL | 27 | 2 h 6 min | 3 | 25 | thunderstorms |
| 28 | Seattle–Tacoma Intl (SEA)Seattle, WA | 26 | 1 h 14 min | 42 | 54 | runway or taxiway work |
| 29 | Tampa Intl (TPA)Tampa, FL | 24 | 1 h 30 min | 1 | 23 | thunderstorms |
| 30 | Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County (DTW)Detroit, MI | 23 | 1 h 51 min | 5 | 23 | thunderstorms |
| 31 | Aspen-Pitkin County Airport (Sardy Field) (ASE)Aspen, CO | 21 | 1 h 19 min | 25 | 39 | traffic volume |
| 32 | Fort Lauderdale Hollywood Intl (FLL)Fort Lauderdale, FL | 19 | 1 h 10 min | 1 | 19 | thunderstorms |
| 33 | Palm Beach Intl (PBI)West Palm Beach, FL | 16 | 1 h 19 min | 15 | 19 | traffic volume |
| 34 | Minneapolis–Saint Paul Intl Airport / Wold–Chamberlain Field (MSP)Minneapolis, MN | 13 | 1 h 4 min | 4 | 15 | thunderstorms |
| 34 | Raleigh-Durham Intl (RDU)Raleigh/Durham, NC | 13 | 1 h 34 min | 1 | 9 | thunderstorms |
| 36 | Los Angeles Intl (LAX)Los Angeles, CA | 10 | 1 h 1 min | 5 | 14 | controller staffing |
| 37 | Eagle County Rgnl (EGE)Eagle, CO | 9 | 1 h 14 min | 10 | 14 | other or unspecified |
| 37 | San Antonio Intl (SAT)San Antonio, TX | 9 | 1 h | 2 | 10 | traffic volume |
| 39 | Salt Lake City Intl (SLC)Salt Lake City, UT | 6 | 1 h 18 min | 1 | 6 | thunderstorms |
| 39 | Essex County (CDW)Caldwell, NJ | 6 | 1 h 54 min | 0 | 4 | thunderstorms |
| 41 | King County Intl Airport - Boeing Field (BFI)Seattle, WA | 5 | 33 min | 0 | 5 | disabled aircraft |
| 41 | Hollywood Burbank/Bob Hope (BUR)Burbank, CA | 5 | 30 min | 0 | 5 | low clouds |
| 41 | Morristown Muni (MMU)Morristown, NJ | 5 | 2 h 49 min | 0 | 5 | thunderstorms |
| 41 | Louis Armstrong New Orleans Intl (MSY)New Orleans, LA | 5 | 51 min | 0 | 5 | thunderstorms |
| 41 | Van Nuys (VNY)Van Nuys, CA | 5 | 41 min | 0 | 5 | disabled aircraft |
| 46 | John Wayne Orange County Intl (SNA)Santa Ana, CA | 4 | 1 h 4 min | 1 | 4 | low clouds |
| 46 | Southwest Florida Intl (RSW)Fort Myers, FL | 4 | 1 h 26 min | 0 | 4 | thunderstorms |
| 46 | Savannah Hilton Head Intl (SAV)Savannah, GA | 4 | 58 min | 0 | 4 | disabled aircraft |
| 46 | Sacramento Intl (SMF)Sacramento, CA | 4 | 1 h 12 min | 0 | 4 | fog and low visibility |
| 50 | Witham Field (SUA)Stuart, FL | 3 | 1 h 23 min | 5 | 5 | traffic volume |
Source: FAA ATCSCC advisory database (fly.faa.gov). "Days affected" counts local days with at least one ground stop or ground delay program. "Typical stop" is the median length. Compiled by ATIS Alerts.
What caused them
The impacting condition the FAA listed on each of the 2,276 ground stops.
| Cause | Ground stops | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorms | 1,048 | 46% |
| Traffic volume | 262 | 12% |
| Wind | 189 | 8% |
| Other or unspecified | 140 | 6% |
| Low clouds | 138 | 6% |
| Controller staffing | 138 | 6% |
| Runway or taxiway work | 74 | 3% |
| Equipment outages | 69 | 3% |
Ground stop questions
Which US airport has the most ground stops?
LaGuardia (LGA), with 191 FAA ground stops in the last 12 months, followed by Chicago O'Hare Intl (ORD) with 155, Newark Liberty Intl (EWR) with 152 and Denver Intl (DEN) with 122. Counts come from the FAA Command Center's own advisories.
How many ground stops does the FAA issue in a year?
2,276 in the last 12 months, at 98 US airports, plus 1,534 ground delay programs. Extensions and revisions of the same ground stop are counted once.
What causes most FAA ground stops?
Thunderstorms (46%), traffic volume (12%) and wind (8%), by the impacting condition the FAA listed on each ground stop advisory in the last 12 months.
How long does a ground stop usually last?
At the 10 airports with the most ground stops, the typical one lasted between 1 h 16 min and 1 h 41 min. The FAA issues them in short blocks and extends them while the cause persists.
More: ground stops explained · airports with the most delayed flights · airports with the fewest delays
Informational only. FAA NAS Status is the authoritative source for active delay programs. ATIS Alerts is not affiliated with the FAA.