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America's Busiest Skies:
The Most Traveled Flight Paths

Our comprehensive analysis brings to light the most frequented air routes across the United States. By examining these busy corridors, we uncover intriguing travel patterns and hubs that form the backbone of US air travel.

U.S. Air Travel Routes

In our analysis of air travel within the United States, we discovered a staggering total of 7,153 distinct flight routes. This expansive network showcases the immense scale and diversity of air travel options available across the country, connecting various cities and regions.

Spotlight on San Francisco International Airport (SFO)

As a major hub in the US air travel network, San Francisco International Airport (SFO) links to 85 airports nationwide, highlighting its crucial role in domestic and international travel.

Operational data reveals SFO's efficiency amidst challenges: average departure delays stand at 13.65 minutes and arrival delays at 8.75 minutes. The airport skillfully manages various delay factors, including an average carrier delay of 28.66 minutes and late aircraft delay of 26.02 minutes.

With an average of 1,820 flights per route, SFO's robust schedule underscores its significant capacity in the air travel sector. Its commitment to minimizing delays, despite heavy traffic, cements its vital position in the global aviation landscape.

Top 25 Most Delayed Routes

In an analysis of flight delay data, three US routes are particularly notorious for delays:

  • Miami (MIA) to New York (JFK): This route, with 12,568 flights, faces average delays of 21.89 minutes, primarily due to carrier and late aircraft issues.
  • Los Angeles (LAX) to New York (JFK): Among its 19,680 flights, passengers experience an average delay of 17.07 minutes, with carrier delays being a major contributor.
  • Miami (MIA) to Atlanta (ATL): With 13,350 flights, the route has an average delay of 17.73 minutes, mainly caused by late aircraft and carrier delays.

Top 25 On-Time Routes

Our analysis of the top 25 best flight routes in the United States reveals an interesting trend: all these routes are located on the West Coast. This geographic concentration highlights the efficiency and reliability of air travel in this region.

  • Anchorage (ANC) to Seattle (SEA): Boasting 14,384 flights, this route impresses with an average departure delay of just 3.67 minutes, showcasing remarkable punctuality.
  • Portland (PDX) to Seattle (SEA): With 14,577 flights, travelers enjoy an average delay of only 4.47 minutes, making it one of the most reliable routes.
  • Spokane (GEG) to Seattle (SEA): This route has 11,908 flights and maintains an average delay of 5.10 minutes, emphasizing efficiency in air travel.

Taking a look at how the airport popularity correlates with delay minutes, we see that a larger number of departures does not necessarily lead to greater delay minutes. The most popular airports by number of departing flights are:

  1. ATL: 636,105 departing flights
  2. DFW: 544,933 departing flights
  3. DEN: 540,218 departing flights
  4. ORD: 514,402 departing flights
  5. LAX: 381,439 departing flights

We see these airports highlighted in yellow to the left. Even Atlanta International Airport, which handled 91,172 more outgoing flights between August 2021 and August 2023, had a lower average departure delay time than 47% of other airports.

The following airports, highlighted in red, represent the 5 that tend to have the most delays out of the top 100 most popular airports.

  1. FLL: 19.48 average departure delay minutes
  2. MCO: 19.00 average departure delay minutes
  3. PBI: 18.70 average departure delay minutes
  4. EWR: 17.89 average departure delay minutes
  5. MIA: 17.75 average departure delay minutes

The most delayed airport in the United States is Huntington Tri-State Airport in Wayne County, West Virginia, which averages 31.85 departure delay minutes.

Since FLL, MCO, PBI, and MIA are all located in Florida, our original thinking was that the delays from these airports would be the result of extreme weather, such as hurricanes. However, our further analysis showed otherwise.

Here we see a breakdown of delay type for the five most delayed airports in the United States. You can select from the list below to explore further. As you can see in each graph, the three most major delay types were late aircraft delays, NAS delays, and carrier delays. Weather delays are shown by the pink slice on the graph.

Interactive Airport Delay Map

Explore our in-depth analysis of airport delays across the United States. This map features 365 U.S. airports, each represented by a dot. Hover over any dot to reveal the average total delay time for that specific airport. Use the Airport Code search feature for quick access to information about a particular airport.

Dynamic Visualization Tools

Enhance your experience with the 'Show Delay' toggle. This feature visualizes each airport's average delay, providing a clear comparative view across the map. For more tailored insights, our filter bar categorizes airports based on delay durations, and the top 5 most delayed airports are highlighted for easy reference.

Regional Patterns and Insights

A notable pattern emerges from our data: the East Coast shows a higher concentration of delayed airports compared to the West Coast.

US Major Airports

Hover over the airports to see the average delay time

Avg Delay > 28 mins