State Watch

Thousands of flights disrupted with much of US in grip of arctic air

Travelers walk through Terminal 3 at the O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. Over 70 flight cancellations at Chicago airports Sunday.

Thousands of flights were delayed or canceled Monday as much of the country experienced subzero temperatures, dangerous wind chills and snow.

By about 2 p.m. EST, 5,067 flights within, into or out of the United States were delayed, and another 2,154 were canceled, according to FlightAware’s live tracker.

Many of the disruptions occurred at Midwestern and Western airports, as well as some airports in the South, as the arctic blast pushed the wintry weather down to the southern states.

In Colorado, Denver International Airport saw 25 percent of its departing flights delayed and 17 percent canceled. At Kansas City International Airport, 27 percent of departing flights were delayed and 15 percent were canceled.

In Tennessee, Nashville International Airport saw 23 percent of flights delayed and 30 percent canceled.


In Texas, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport had 34 percent of its flights delayed and 13 percent canceled, while Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport saw 25 percent of its flights delayed and 20 percent canceled.

Dallas Love Field Airport had 11 percent of its flights delayed and 20 percent canceled. At Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, 24 percent were delayed and 17 percent were canceled.

At Chicago O’Hare International, 29 percent were delayed, and 11 percent were canceled. Chicago Midway International had 17 percent of flights delayed and 29 percent canceled.

In New York, Buffalo Niagara International Airport had 13 percent of flights were delayed and 21 percent canceled. At New York’s LaGuardia Airport, 19 percent of flights were delayed and 3 percent were canceled.

In the Washington, D.C. region, Reagan Washington National Airport saw 38 percent of its flights delayed and 10 percent canceled. Washington Dulles International Airport had 29 percent of its flights delayed and 3 percent canceled, while 30 percent of flights were delayed and 6 percent were canceled at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.