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Inside Orlando Sanford International Airport
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The 20 Worst US Airports for Delayed Flights

If you’ve been stuck on the tarmac or stranded at the gate for what seems like an eternity, you’re not alone. A new study by travel website Places to Travel reveals which U.S. airports are the biggest culprits when it comes to lengthy flight delays. Places to Travel analyzed data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics for nearly 2 million delayed domestic flights from January 2023 through February 2024 to find the airports with the longest average delay times.

If you want to avoid a long flight delay, don’t book a flight through Provo Airport in Utah. Late flights at this small airport were delayed an average of 1 hour and 42 minutes. According to the study, of the 2,194 flights that landed at Provo, 39.74 percent (872) were delayed.

The second worst offender for delayed flights was a much bigger airport, Orlando Sanford International Airport in Florida, with average delays of 1 hour and 34 minutes.

While large hubs like Chicago O’Hare International Airport, New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, and Philadelphia International Airoprt made the top 20 for longest delays, the findings show that delay times don’t necessarily correlate with an airport’s size and volume of flights.

“The data doesn’t show a clear trend with regard to the size of airports,” said Jason Wilson, CEO of Places to Travel. “However, the findings do still show that a massive number of flights are delayed, resulting in traveler stress and potential missed connections, among other consequences, and the air travel infrastructure needs to urgently adapt to handle the massive volumes of passengers to rectify this.”

Provo Airport
Provo Airport

The US Airports With the Longest Average Flight Delays

Rank Airport Total delayed minutes Planes delayed Average delay time
1. Provo Airport 88,526 872 1 hour, 42 minutes and 31 seconds
2. Orlando Sanford International Airport 259,681 2,766 1 hour, 34 minutes and 53 seconds
3. Dallas Fort Worth International Airport 5,896,245 66,105 1 hour, 29 minutes and 12 seconds
4. Charlotte Douglas International Airport 3,588,090 40,963 1 hour, 28 minutes and 36 seconds
5. Philadelphia International Airport 1,780,068 20,813 1 hour, 26 minutes and 32 seconds
6. John F. Kennedy International Airport 2,758,287 32,815 1 hour, 24 minutes and 3 seconds
7. St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport 158,970 1,905 1 hour, 23 minutes and 27 seconds
8. Montgomery Regional Airport 33,565 404 1 hour, 23 minutes and 5 seconds
9. Punta Gorda Airport 157,266 1,898 1 hour, 23 minutes and 52 seconds
10. Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport 115,403 1,421 1 hour, 21 minutes and 13 seconds
11. Trenton-Mercer Airport 59,041 728 1 hour, 21 minutes and 6 seconds
12. Nantucket Memorial Airport 29,963 371 1 hour, 21 minutes and 46 seconds
13. Quad Cities International Airport 51,602 643 1 hour, 20 minutes and 15 seconds
14. Lehigh Valley International Airport 75,682 952 1 hour, 19 minutes and 30 seconds
15. Chicago O’Hare International Airport 4,317,893 54,320 1 hour, 19 minutes and 29 seconds
16. Meadows Field Airport 41,308 520 1 hour, 19 minutes and 26 seconds
17. Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport 1,803,399 22,751 1 hour, 19 minutes and 16 seconds
18. Aspen/Pitkin County Airport 165,161 2,088 1 hour, 19 minutes and  6 seconds
19. Wilkes-Barre Scranton International Airport 37,425 475 1 hour, 19 minutes and 47 seconds
20. Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport 1,538,166 19,580 1 hour, 19 minutes and 33 seconds
Hilo International Airport Welcome Sign
Hilo International Airport

On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you want the best chance of an on-time flight, travel through Hilo International Airport in Hawaii, where the average delay was just 40 minutes. 

Rank Airport Total delayed minutes Planes delayed Average delay time
1. Hilo International Airport 57,780 1,433 40 minutes and 19 seconds
2. Long Beach Airport 144,414 3,392 43 minutes and 34 seconds
3. Kona International Airport 156,597 3,587 44 minutes and 39 seconds
4. Lihue Airport 149,869 3,407 44 minutes and 59 seconds
5. Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport 31,394 654 48 minutes and 0 seconds
6. Kahului Airport 290,382 6,003 48 minutes and 22 seconds
7. Fairbanks International Airport 28,668 587 49 minutes and 50 seconds
8. Oakland International Airport 489,950 9,968 49 minutes and 9 seconds
9. San José Mineta International Airport 502,260 10,054 50 minutes and 57 seconds
10. Valley International Airport 34,561 678 51 minutes and 58 seconds
11. Juneau International Airport 40,731 794 51 minutes and 18 seconds
12. Hollywood Burbank Airport 320,059 6,233 51 minutes and 21 seconds
13. Daniel K. Inouye International Airport 791,403 15,345 52 minutes and 34 seconds
14. William P. Hobby Airport 602,616 11,622 52 minutes and 51 seconds
15. John Wayne Airport 468,632 9,017 52 minutes and 58 seconds
16. Dallas Love Field Airport 832,596 15,783 53 minutes and 45 seconds
17. Sacramento International Airport 618,860 11,635 53 minutes and 11 seconds
18. Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport 202,247 3,763 54 minutes and 45 seconds
19. Albuquerque International Sunport 285,208 5,278 54 minutes and 2 seconds
20. San Diego International Airport 1,175,527 21,477 55 minutes and 44 seconds

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