Delta Air Lines Inc.

01/26/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 01/26/2026 10:36

Winter Storm Fern Update: Delta teams restoring operations across hubs

Winter Storm Fern Update: Delta teams restoring operations across hubs

Delta continues to make steady progress in its recovery from this weekend's Winter Storm Fern, with flights resuming across key hubs in Atlanta and the Northeast.

Staff Writer
Jan 26, 2026 11:30am

Delta continues to make steady progress in its recovery from this weekend's Winter Storm Fern, with flights resuming across key hubs in Atlanta and the Northeast. Delta people are continuing to work tirelessly through widespread weather impacts to serve customers as safely and quickly as possible.

Operations in the Northeast are set to resume through late morning and midday, with operations expected to resume around the noon hour at New York-LGA, New York-JFK and Boston. Delta teams are in constant contact with our airport authority and Air Traffic Control colleagues to address restart challenges through Monday.

Atlanta, Delta's largest hub, is seeing stable recovery this morning as teams manage through residual weather effects and focus on a safe, reliable return to service.

Travel waivers remain available for customers to adjust plans as necessary at no additional cost. Customers traveling today should continue to check the Delta app or delta.com for the latest flight status information.

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Sunday, Jan. 25 | 7:30 p.m. ET

As winter weather moves through affected areas of the country, Delta teams plan to resume operations as conditions improve and weather permits. Flights at stations in the Ohio and Tennessee Valley regions began slowly resuming Sunday evening. Below-freezing temperatures in Atlanta and lingering precipitation overnight at some airports in the Northeast may impact flights Monday morning.

Customers should continue to check their flight status on the Delta app or delta.com before heading to the airport. Travel waivers remain available, providing customers with flexibility to adjust plans at no additional cost.

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Sunday, Jan. 25 | 10:30 a.m. ET

As winter weather conditions persist today in several regions, Delta teams are safely managing the weather impacts. We intend to operate a reduced schedule subject to real-time frozen precipitation and afternoon storm conditions.

An Update from ATL Airport
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Delta teams are actively monitoring weather conditions in the Northeast as well as at the airline's largest hub in Atlanta. Due to proactive schedule adjustments, current morning flights are operating as planned. We remind customers to monitor their flight status closely via the Delta app or Delta.com before arriving at the airport.

Delta has issued travel waivers that provide flexibility for customers to adjust their flights at no additional cost in the Delta app or at Delta.com.

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Saturday, Jan. 24 | 6 a.m. ET

Delta continues to make schedule adjustments due to Winter Storm Fern with additional cancellations this morning for Atlanta and along the East Coast, including Delta hubs in Boston and New York City. Ice accumulation is expected to impact Atlanta on Sunday, Jan. 25 along with significant snowfall in the Northeast beginning Sunday afternoon.

Winter Storm waivers remain in effect through Monday, Jan. 26, which provide flexibility for customers to adjust their travel plans at no additional cost in the Delta app or at Delta.com.

Delta works to give customers as much notice as possible about changes to their flights and is taking proactive actions to minimize disruption and aid in recovery efforts:

  • Enacting flight cancelations well in advance of scheduled departures to allow customers more time and flexibility while away from airports.
  • Adjusting staffing levels with additional reserve pilots and flights attendants, as well as relocating experts from cold weather hubs to support deicing and baggage teams at several Southern airports.
  • Placing aircraft out of frozen precipitation, where possible, to aid in faster recovery efforts. Once conditions improve, aircraft will be repositioned to resume scheduled flying.

Flight disruption rebooking and refund eligibility

Customers have options if their flight is significantly delayed or canceled. Delta automatically rebooks customers to the next best itinerary, and customers can make further changes via the Delta app and Delta.com. Additional guidance includes:

  • Customers who experience a cancellation and are not automatically rebooked should promptly contact Delta either at the airport or by reaching out to our Reservations team by phone or the Message Us option on the app, to identify alternative flight options.
  • Customers traveling on a U.S. domestic itinerary who experience a flight delay of three hours or more and choose not to fly-either on the original delayed flight or on a rebooked itinerary-are entitled to receive a full refund for the unflown portion of their ticket (including any ancillary fees paid or checked baggage charges). The same refund eligibility applies if a customer experiences a flight delay of six hours or more on an international itinerary and chooses not to fly.  
  • If a flight is cancelled and the customer chooses not to fly on their rebooked itinerary, Delta will initiate a full, automatic refund back to the original form of payment of the unflown portion of the ticket, following a 24-hour waiting period.
  • Per Department of Transportation automatic refund requirements, Delta will initiate an automatic ticket refund of the unflown portion of the ticket if we are unable to rebook the trip and have not heard from the customer to arrange an alternative flight.

More information can be found on the Refund and Reimbursement section of Delta.com.

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Friday, Jan. 23 | 2 p.m. ET

As our teams continue to monitor Winter Storm Fern, Delta encourages customers traveling this weekend in affected areas to move their flights before or after the storm due to anticipated cancellations. As schedule adjustments are made to prioritize the safety of our customers and people, Delta's priority is to notify customers as early as possible of any flight cancellations.

Customers can expect cancellations in the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, Nashville and Raleigh-Durham. As the storm moves eastward, we expect additional schedule adjustments for Atlanta and the Northeast regions tomorrow morning.

Affected areas are covered in both Winter Storm waivers that extend through Monday, Jan. 26. Customers can view flight status and adjust their travel plans at no additional cost in the Delta app or at Delta.com.

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Thursday, Jan. 22 | 2:40 p.m. ET

As the winter storm system moves east, current forecasts indicate significant snowfall in Oklahoma and accumulating ice throughout Northern Texas beginning Friday evening.

Winter Storm Fern: Inside Delta's Operations & Customer Center
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Due to these expected conditions, flight cancelations are necessary at select airports in North Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Tennessee to ensure the safety of our customers and people. Delta automatically rebooks customers to the next best itinerary, and customers can make further changes via the Delta app and Delta.com.

Delta is proactively adjusting staffing levels to ensure teams are in place to support our customers. This includes sending experts from cold weather hubs to support deicing and baggage teams at airports such as Atlanta, Birmingham, Huntsville, Knoxville and Nashville.

This weather system is currently forecasted to impact operations in the Northeast starting Sunday afternoon. To help minimize disruption to our customers' travel plans, we've issued a travel waiver for Eastern North America, in addition to the winter weather waiver issued yesterday covering impacted parts of the central and southeastern United States. Both waivers cover travel to, from or through affected cities.

Additional guidance for customers:

  • Before coming to the airport, we encourage customers to verify their flight status via the Delta app or on Delta.com.
  • Use the app's self-service standby feature to view and join available standby lists, providing customers with more flexibility to get on an earlier flight where space is available (feature limited to U.S. domestic travel only, for customers on the last leg of their trip).
  • Customers traveling on a U.S. domestic itinerary who experience a flight delay of three hours or more and choose not to fly - either on the original delayed flight or on a rebooked itinerary - are entitled to receive a full refund for the unflown portion of their ticket (including any ancillary fees paid or checked baggage charges). The same refund eligibility applies if a customer experiences a flight delay of six hours or more on an international itinerary and chooses not to fly.

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Wednesday, Jan. 21 | 7 a.m. ET

Weather forecasts predict impactful winter weather including freezing rain, sleet and ice accumulation across Texas, the Southeast, including Delta's Atlanta hub, and into the Northeast over the next several days. The safety of Delta customers and our people remains first and foremost as we closely monitor forecasts to determine necessary schedule adjustments.

To help customers manage their travel plans and minimize disruptions, Delta is offering flexibility to customers with existing bookings to change their travel with no fees. If you would like to adjust your travel, visit Delta.com or the app. As always, if a flight is canceled or a delay causes a misconnect, Delta will work to rebook customers on the next available flight.

Delta encourages customers to watch their flight status closely on delta.com or the app for the latest information. Customers can have updates sent directly to their mobile device or by email. Delta will provide customers with as much notice as possible about changes to flight schedules.

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Delta Air Lines Inc. published this content on January 26, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on January 26, 2026 at 16:37 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]