Thunderstorms Snarl Air Travel and Bring More Storms Thursday
It’s been a rough stretch for anyone flying along the East Coast today. Thunderstorms have been sweeping through the region, and by Wednesday afternoon, they had already forced the Federal Aviation Administration to issue ground stops at six major airports. That meant no planes could take off toward those hubs until it was safe to do so — a move designed to keep air traffic manageable and passengers safe, but one that also created massive ripple effects nationwide.
The affected airports included all three big New York City hubs — John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia, and Newark — as well as Baltimore, Reagan National, and Dulles in the Washington, D.C. area. Philadelphia didn’t escape trouble either; it was put under a ground delay, slowing inbound flights. By 4 p.m., more than 3,600 flights across the United States had been delayed, with some of the worst backups at Chicago O’Hare, Atlanta, Denver, and, of course, those storm-hit East Coast airports. Airlines like Southwest, JetBlue, and Delta even issued travel waivers so passengers could rebook through Saturday without penalty.
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If you’ve never heard of a ground stop, think of it as a temporary freeze in the system — planes waiting at their departure airports instead of crowding the skies near a storm-hit destination. It’s not unusual in summer, when hot, humid air makes powerful thunderstorms more likely, and it’s one of the FAA’s key tools for preventing dangerous congestion both in the air and on the runways.
The trouble is, when one region’s schedule gets knocked off balance, the rest of the country feels it. A delayed plane in New York might have been scheduled to fly to Denver next, and then on to Seattle after that. If it can’t leave on time, the entire day’s schedule for that aircraft — and its crew — is thrown out of sync. That’s how a thunderstorm in the Northeast can end up causing a late-night delay in another state entirely.
Weather forecasters are warning that this unsettled pattern isn’t over yet. Thursday is expected to start cloudy and foggy in many areas, with a chance of light showers in the morning and scattered thunderstorms developing later in the day. Highs will climb into the mid-80s, but humidity will push the “feels-like” temperature into the 90s. Conditions should turn sunnier by Friday, and the weekend is looking bright and warm. Still, travelers should keep an eye on the forecast, especially with more showers and storms possible early next week.
For now, patience is the name of the game — whether you’re at the airport or just waiting out the storm from home. The skies will clear, but it looks like Mother Nature has at least one more round of summer turbulence in store before we get there.
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