Airlines Issue Monday Travel Waivers Following Severe Northeast Storms, Major Delays

Travel advisors with clients flying through the Northeast corridor on Monday are facing a challenging morning of rebookings and tight capacities. A combination of severe weekend weather, maximum post-holiday travel volumes, and temporary airspace restrictions has triggered a major operational hangover across some big East Coast hubs.

According to FlightAware, as of 7:20 a.m. EST on Monday morning, New York’s LaGuardia (LGA), John F. Kennedy International (JFK), Newark Liberty International (EWR), and Boston Logan (BOS) airports are all seeing higher-than-normal flight delays.

The hardest hit so far is LaGuardia, which is seeing 7% of its departures and another 10% of its arrivals delayed on Monday morning.

Most of the delays stem from severe storms that slammed the Northeast, following a major heatwave, over the weekend. According to the National Weather Service, aside from the thunderstorms, wind gusts of 75+ mph hit some areas of the region.

Those storms caused major delays at those airports, including about a quarter of all flights from LaGuardia on Sunday, and another 10% to 15% from Kennedy, Newark, and Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA) on Sunday. Crews and planes are still trying to get back into position.

To help manage the gridlock, several airlines have issued travel alerts and flexible rebooking waivers for Monday. Advisors should check specific client itineraries against the following active policies:

• Delta Air Lines: Delta has extended its holiday travel waiver for passengers flying into, out of, or through seven major hubs, including LGA, JFK, EWR, and DCA. Change fees and fare differences are waived, provided tickets are reissued and rescheduled travel begins on or before Tuesday, July 7, 2026.
  
• American Airlines: American’s waiver covers travelers scheduled to fly through July 7, 2026, across major Northeast hubs. Changes must be booked by July 7, 2026, for rescheduled travel completed by July 10, 2026, with change fees and fare differences waived for the same cabin.
  
• JetBlue: Tied to weekend airspace restrictions and lingering operational delays, JetBlue is waiving change and cancellation fees, as well as fare differences, for customers who were scheduled to fly through July 5, 2026. Rebooked travel must be completed by Wednesday, July 8, 2026.

The situation, especially around New York City, isn’t expected to improve that much through the beginning of the week. The area is expecting 2 to 4 inches of rainfall through Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning, rain that is likely to cause more delays and cancellations. New York City’s Office of Emergency Management is warning of flash flooding, heavy rainfall, and potential subway disruptions through Tuesday.