The runway closed. The weather turned. Memorial Day weekend was already going to be ugly at LaGuardia.
A sinkhole opened up near Runway 4/22 at New York's LaGuardia Airport on Wednesday during the Port Authority's daily airfield inspection, and the runway was shut down on the spot while emergency crews worked to figure out the cause and fix it.
The timing wasn't great, with thunderstorms heading toward New York and air traffic controllers already slowing down or pausing departures during bad weather.
The Federal Aviation Administration said weather was already delaying flights at all three NYC-area airports and in the Washington, D.C. area, and the sinkhole just stacked on top of that.
The Port Authority's statement was straightforward. "The runway was immediately shut down, and emergency construction and engineering crews are onsite to determine the cause and complete necessary repairs as quickly and safely as possible."
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Southwest said about 20 of its arrivals would be delayed Wednesday, though it noted weather was also a factor.
Delta has a weather waiver in place for flights in and out of New York-area airports, with customers able to rebook for no later than Sunday at no charge. Other major carriers hadn't responded by the time the story ran.
For investors, the read-through is short. Airlines are heading into Memorial Day weekend - one of the highest-revenue stretches of the year - already nursing weather pain at the most congested airport in the country.
Sinkhole repairs at major airports tend to wrap fast because the cost of leaving a runway dark adds up by the hour - but "fast" still means days, not minutes.
Investors watching travel stocks were greeting the news pretty calmly, with Southwest up about 1.9% on the day and Delta up about 1.5%.
The runway can be patched. The weekend can't be moved.
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