- Thousands of flights were delayed as winter storms hit the US and Canada over the holiday weekend.
- That included more than 2,000 at major airports around New York and Washington, DC on Sunday.
- Half of departing flights at the world’s busiest airport, Atlanta, were also delayed on Sunday.
Winter storms saw thousands of flights delayed, primarily across the East Coast, over the Presidents Day weekend.
Major airports in New York, Newark, and Washington, DC, saw around 40% of their flights delayed on Sunday — totaling over 2,000, per data from FlightAware. Around 850 flights were canceled.
Nearly half of flights departing Boston and Toronto were also delayed, around 260 at each airport, according to FlightAware.
The National Weather Service warned of wind gusts over 60 miles per hour, while parts of Boston saw six inches of snowfall.
The Midwest was also struck by the polar vortex, with temperatures in the low single digits. Strong winds could also make it feel as low as negative 25 degrees Fahrenheit, CBS Chicago reported.
Around 1,000 flights were delayed at Chicago O’Hare — including half of those departing, FlightAware data showed. Two-thirds of Detroit’s departing flights were also delayed.
Bad weather also impacted flights on Saturday, with more than 70% of flights from Denver delayed.
Further south, Florida was hit by thunderstorms over the weekend. The National Weather Service also issued a tornado watch.
Over 1,000 flights were delayed across the state on Sunday, including two in every five at Orlando and a third of those at Miami, per FlightAware.
Its data also showed more than 500 departing flights, or half of those scheduled, were delayed at Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson — the world’s busiest airport and a hub for Delta Air Lines.
In Atlanta, wind gusts peaked at 69 miles per hour and one man died when a tree fell on his home, a local Fox affiliate reported.
Flight delays can be irritating for passengers, but also costly for airlines — with knock-on effects on their schedules.
Delays are continuing into Monday, though as of around 6:00 a.m. ET, they were much less widespread, with only around 20 flights out of Toronto Pearson delayed, and fewer than 10% of flights delayed at most major East Coast airports.
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