The worst of the weather has yet to arrive in the Bay Area, but SFO is already feeling the impact Tuesday with hundreds of flight delays, primarily due to wind.
The worst of the weather has yet to arrive in the Bay Area, but SFO is already feeling the impact Tuesday.
Hundreds of flights have been delayed or canceled so far Tuesday. As of 11 a.m., around 225 flights have been delayed and airport officials say those delays have averaged around 25 minutes.
These stormy conditions have come at a time of year that’s already extremely busy at the airport.
SFO expects to see around 150,000 people in and out of SFO on Tuesday alone.
Spokesperson Doug Yakel confirmed to ABC7 News that it’s primarily the wind that’s behind the ground delays Tuesday.
“Really what’s driving it right now are the wind conditions at SFO,” Yakel said. “So you always want to take off into the direction of the wind, and normally that’s west-northwest. But today, these winds are coming out of the south. So essentially, what we’ve had to do is a 180 on how we’re taking off and landing. We’re in a far less efficient configuration today. That’s really what’s driving today’s delays.”
Yakel said that the delay program is expected to last the rest of the day.
So far, the delays are largely because of the wind, but Yakel said that more rain could also reduce visibility and cause even more delays.
The recommendation, as always, is to make sure you are subscribed to get notifications sent straight to your phone to stay on top of your flight’s status.