The smoke from Canadian wildfires engulfed much of the eastern United States on Thursday, causing flights across the Northeast and elsewhere to be delayed for a second day.
Early on Thursday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a warning, anticipating that it would at various moments during the day restrict the flow of planes into and out of congested East Coast hubs in New York City, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Charlotte. All departing planes from the Northeast, the mid-Atlantic, and Ohio that were headed for New York's LaGuardia Airport (LGA) were momentarily halted by the agency at 7:45 a.m. EDT.
The FAA issued identical traffic throttle orders for planes to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) throughout Thursday morning.
Flights to Philadelphia had resumed by 1 p.m. EDT, but traffic management measures were still in place and were slowing departures to LaGuardia and Newark, the FAA reported, with delays averaging 34 to 55 minutes. Approximately 1,710 American aircraft had been delayed, according to FlightAware statistics.
The vast majority of aircraft were still departing on time, according to the FlightAware statistics, so the impact was still quite minimal. United Airlines had statistically delayed 168 flights (6% of its scheduled flights) and canceled 22 (0%). Southwest Airlines delayed 272 flights and canceled three, while Delta Air Lines delayed 185 flights and canceled four. JetBlue Airways, based in New York, delayed 152 flights (15%). American Airlines, which has hubs in each of the affected areas named by the FAA, did not immediately have a way to report its delays; as of 1 p.m. EDT, it has not canceled any flights.
Flights are often spaced further apart than usual as an added measure of safety, even though pilots may fly in low visibility by using instruments and navigational aids. The FAA stated in a video update that since smoke and other particle matter can make the instruments less accurate than fog, clouds, and rain, planes need to stay wider apart.
From Boston to Washington, D.C., cities along the Eastern Seaboard were suffering poor air quality on Thursday afternoon. The blowing smoke affected states as far south and west as Louisiana, Oklahoma, and the Dakotas. According to federal data, the areas with the worst air quality were Washington and the surrounding region, which were classified as having a "very unhealthy" index.
City officials in New York City advised citizens to stay inside because the city had the worst air quality on Wednesday amid an orange-tinted cloud of smoke. For individuals who had to leave their houses, the fire service provided free N95 masks, and public schools announced that lessons would be held virtually on Friday. Sports contests, parades, fairs, and other events were rescheduled from New York to Washington.
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