Boston Logan Airport. Photo: Wirestock Creators / Shutterstock.com The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) temporarily halted flights bound for Boston Logan International Airport early on Sunday night (July 5) after issuing a ground stop that affected departures from multiple U.S. and Canadian airports.
According to the FAA's Air Traffic Control System Command Center advisory, the ground stop was in effect from 02:12 UTC until 03:30 UTC. The measure applied to flights departing from the FAA air traffic control centers ZDC, ZNY, ZOB, and ZBW, as well as several Canadian airports, including Halifax, Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto Pearson, Billy Bishop Toronto City, and Québec City.
The advisory showed delays increased significantly after the ground stop was implemented, severely impacting hundreds of flights and affecting travelers at the end of the 4th of July holiday weekend as many of them were on their way back home. Although the fueling issue has since been resolved and the ground stop lifted, residual departure delays are averaging nearly 2 hours.
Before the update, the FAA estimated a total of 664 minutes of delays, with a maximum delay of 103 minutes and an average delay of 37 minutes. Following the advisory, those figures climbed to 1,670 total minutes, a maximum delay of 163 minutes, and an average delay of 93 minutes.
Officials also assessed the probability of an extension as medium, indicating the possibility that the traffic management measure could remain in place beyond its initially scheduled end time if necessary.
Boston Logan is the international gateway for Massachusetts and New England, providing direct flights to more than 100 domestic and global destinations.