NEW YORK: Confusion reigned at airports across the United States on Friday as a rare grounding of all US flights stranded hundreds of thousands of frustrated travelers.

In New York's busy LaGuardia airport, Janice Llewellyn was on the verge of tears: the chaos could mean she will miss her daughter's wedding in Toronto.

The 61-year-old Llewellyn was desperate to find an alternative route, telling AFP: "I may lose my mind."

"My husband flew all the way from England to get to the wedding," she said.