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Flight cancellations are surging across the United States, with 3,012 delays and 596 cancellations nationwide. Just as major events are drawing travelers into some of the United States’ biggest cities, including New York, Philadelphia, Washington, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, and Los Angeles, those journeys have become more difficult. New York City is seeing a surge in flight bookings driven by fans arriving for the 2026 US Open, building on the 2025 tournament’s record attendance.
Amid FAA restrictions at several airports, Southwest, American Airlines, Republic, and JetBlue were among the airlines facing the heaviest disruption today.
The strongest operational impact is being felt in the Northeast. FAA Ground-delay programs at New York, Philadelphia, Newark, and Washington were attributed to thunderstorms, with Newark experiencing an average ground delay of 164 minutes and Philadelphia 117 minutes.
Philadelphia faced severe disruptions, with thunderstorms triggering a Ground Delay Program and an average delay of 117 minutes. The disruption comes as the city continues to handle elevated visitor activity following a major-events period. On August 20, 2026, the Parker Administration announced that Epsilon Economics had been hired to assess the economic and fiscal impact of major events held through July 31, including the FIFA World Cup, MLB All-Star Week, and America250 celebrations. Pennsylvania’s Department of Community & Economic Development has separately estimated that more than 500,000 people visited Pennsylvania for the six World Cup matches played in Philadelphia, highlighting the scale of travel demand surrounding the city. Travel and Tour World reached out to airports to verify today’s flight disruptions and better understand the operational situation.
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Thunderstorms are impacting travel along the east coast, including at PHL (https://nasstatus.faa.gov/). We have about 850 scheduled flights today and according to Flight Aware, there are 111 cancellations and 241 delays. We advise passengers flying in or out of PHL today to check with their airline for flight updates as weather in the Philadelphia region and elsewhere could impact their flights. – Heather
New York saw 142 delays and 126 cancellations at JFK. The airport was under a thunderstorm-related ground-delay program with an average delay of 101 minutes.
Domestic air arrivals into New York are up 15% year-on-year for the US Open.
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LaGuardia recorded 163 delays and 148 cancellations, the highest cancellation among airports in the United States. Its thunderstorm-related ground-delay program carried an average delay of 101 minutes.
Washington, D.C. recorded 173 delays and 92 cancellations, while its ground-delay program showed an average delay of 73 minutes because of thunderstorms. The Smithsonian also announced modified access at three museums from August 21–23 because of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix.
Chicago recorded 198 delays and 12 cancellations at O’Hare. OAG’s August 2026 figures show approximately 5.07 million scheduled seats at the airport for the month, up 9% year over year, highlighting the enormous volume moving through the city’s main aviation hub.
Atlanta recorded 181 delays and 10 cancellations. OAG reports approximately 5.44 million scheduled seats in August 2026, making Hartsfield-Jackson the world’s busiest airport by scheduled capacity for the month.
Newark recorded 265 delays and 47 cancellations, while its ground-delay program showed an average delay of 164 minutes because of thunderstorms. The disruption is significant for the New York metropolitan area, where Newark serves as a major gateway for domestic and international travelers.
San Francisco recorded 275 delays and 10 cancellations, the highest delay total among the major cities in this report. Its ground-delay program showed an average delay of 59 minutes attributed to other operational factors.
Boston recorded 128 delays and 40 cancellations, adding to significant disruption across the Northeast.
Los Angeles recorded 153 delays and eight cancellations, making LAX another major pressure point in the United States aviation network.
San Diego recorded 142 delays and four cancellations. Its ground-delay program attributed an average delay of 23 minutes to airport volume.
Baltimore recorded 77 delays and 25 cancellations, adding to disruption across the wider Washington-Baltimore travel corridor.
Indianapolis recorded 29 delays and 15 cancellations, with the airport also affected by wider weather-related pressures across parts of the US aviation network.
Pittsburgh recorded 35 delays and 16 cancellations, adding to the broader disruption affecting travelers across the United States.
Republic recorded 148 cancellations, the highest today. It also recorded 97 delays, with cancellations accounting for 12% and delays for 8% of its foperations.
JetBlue recorded 78 cancellations and 117 delays. Its delay rate stood at 10%, while 7% of its reported operations were cancelled.
Endeavor Air recorded 76 cancellations and 72 delays. Its cancellation rate was 9%, while delays accounted for 8%.
PSA Airlines recorded 62 cancellations and 117 delays. Its 15% delay rate was the highest among the airlines in the current figures.
Piedmont recorded 55 cancellations and 48 delays. Its cancellation rate reached 12%, while delays represented 11%.
American Airlines recorded 28 cancellations but a much higher 355 delays. Its delay total was second only to Southwest, making it a major contributor to disruption across the United States.
Southwest recorded the highest delay total among the airlines at 515, alongside 45 cancellations. Its reported delay rate was 12%, making Southwest one of the most operationally affected carriers today.
Thunderstorms and other operational constraints are forcing the FAA to impose ground-delay programs at several major U.S. airports, restricting the flow of arriving and departing flights and contributing to cancellations and knock-on delays.
San Francisco was under a Ground Delay Program with an average delay of 59 minutes, attributed to other operational factors.
San Diego was under a Ground Delay Program with an average delay of 23 minutes, with the FAA attributing the restriction to airport volume.
JFK was under a Ground Delay Program with an average delay of 101 minutes because of thunderstorms, restricting the movement of flights through the airport.
LaGuardia was also under a Ground Delay Program because of thunderstorms, with an average delay of 101 minutes.
Philadelphia faced a Ground Delay Program triggered by thunderstorms, producing an average delay of 117 minutes.
Newark experienced the most severe average delay among these locations, with a Ground Delay Program caused by thunderstorms producing an average delay of 164 minutes.
Reagan National was under a Ground Delay Program because of thunderstorms, with an average delay of 73 minutes.
These FAA restrictions are particularly significant because JFK, LaGuardia, Newark, Philadelphia, and Reagan National are all experiencing thunderstorm-related ground delays at the same time, putting additional pressure on flight operations across the United States.
The United States is experiencing widespread disruption rather than a problem confined to one city or carrier. The heaviest pressure is concentrated around major hubs, with Philadelphia, Newark, New York, Washington, and San Francisco among the most affected locations.
In New York, both JFK and LaGuardia are dealing with substantial cancellation totals. Newark is facing an even longer average ground delay, while Philadelphia is also experiencing significant thunderstorm-related restrictions.
Further west, San Francisco has recorded 275 delays, while Los Angeles has 153 and San Diego 142. In the Midwest, Chicago has recorded 198 delays, while Atlanta has 181.
Southwest leads in delays with 515, followed by American Airlines with 355. JetBlue, PSA Airlines, and Endeavor Air are also experiencing substantial disruption, while Republic has recorded the highest cancellation total at 148.
For passengers traveling through the United States today, the disruption means that conditions at the departure airport may not tell the whole story. A flight can be affected by weather or traffic restrictions at another hub earlier in its route, creating delays that continue through later departures and connections.
The data has been extensively curated by our editorial team using real-time aviation figures recorded on 20 August 2026 at 3:00 pm ET USA
Primary Source: FlightAware.
Verification Protocol: All statistics have been independently reviewed and cross-checked by our human editorial desk. Timestamped records, data logs and feed snapshots are securely archived internally to support historical accuracy and editorial transparency.
Note: Real-time flight-tracking figures reflect active airspace and operational data. Minor variations may occur when compared with information displayed at individual airport terminals or airline departure gates.
Travellers are advised to check directly with their respective airlines and airports for the latest flight status, schedule changes and operational updates.
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Tags: American Airlines flights cancelled today, Flights to New York Cancelled Today, Southwest Cancelled Flights Today, United States Flight Cancellations Today, United States Flight Delays Today
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