By David Shepardson

Some flights into the New York City area on Wednesday were delayed and some briefly halted because of reduced visibility from wildfire smoke from Canada.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was slowing traffic but lifted a groundstop on flights from the upper Midwest and East Coast bound for New York LaGuardia International Airport on Wednesday afternoon.

United, the largest carrier at Newark, said it was adjusting its schedule as needed, while Delta, the biggest at LaGuardia said it does not expect cancellations at the moment from the visibility issues.

Hundreds of forest fires in Canada have led to a blanket of smoky air, triggering health alarms in U.S. cities.

The FAA said Newark was currently experiencing delays averaging 82 minutes while average LaGuardia ground delays are about two hours and departure delays are about 30 minutes.

The New York City area has the most congested airspace in the United States.

(Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Chris Reese and Lisa Shumaker)