New research has identified the US airports with the longest and shortest average arrival delays, highlighting significant differences in punctuality across the country.
A study by student travel company Rustic Pathways examined Bureau of Transportation Statistics data on arriving flight punctuality from May 2024 – May 2025, the latest available period at the time of analysis. The research measured average delay per arriving flight, calculated as the difference in minutes between scheduled and actual arrival times.
Airports with the longest average arrival delays
- Lea County Regional Airport in New Mexico recorded the highest average arrival delay in the US. Across 793 flights, arrivals were delayed by an average of 37.24 minutes, totaling 29,531 minutes of delay.
- Victoria Regional Airport in Texas ranked second, with an average delay of 33.75 minutes over 693 flights, amounting to 23,389 total minutes delayed.
- Prescott Regional Airport in Arizona placed third, averaging 32.51 minutes of delay per flight across 791 arrivals, with 25,716 total minutes delayed.
- Houghton County Memorial Airport in Michigan followed with an average delay of 31.99 minutes across 791 flights, totaling 25,302 minutes.
- Morgantown Municipal Airport in West Virginia completed the top five at 31.80 minutes average delay over 340 flights, with 10,811 minutes delayed overall.
- Chippewa Valley Regional Airport in Wisconsin, averaging 29.68 minutes across 292 flights for 8,667 total minutes delayed.
- John Murtha Johnstown Cambria County Airport in Pennsylvania, with a 29.52 minute average across 791 flights, totaling 23,353 minutes.
- Cheyenne Regional Airport in Wyoming, averaging 29.27 minutes over 753 flights for 22,042 minutes delayed.
- Provo Municipal Airport in Utah, at 29.10 minutes across 2,882 flights, totaling 83,871 minutes.
- Key Field in Mississippi, with an average delay of 27.92 minutes over 680 flights, amounting to 18,984 minutes.
Shayne Fitz-Coy, CEO of Rustic Pathways, said the findings reveal clear patterns. “The data shows many smaller regional airports face issues with flight punctuality. This could be due to these airports having fewer resources to handle delays and less flexibility in their flight schedules. This can be seen in that seven of the 10 airports experiencing the most delays handled fewer than 1,000 flights in the study period. Looking at the data overall also shows us that carrier delays account for 37% of delay minutes at each US airport, with 6.91% delays coming from weather, highlighting the fact that many flights are delayed at the fault of a flight operator, and not just natural occurrences.”
Airports with the shortest average arrival delays
St Cloud Regional Airport in Minnesota recorded the shortest average arrival delay at 1.77 minutes across 184 flights, totaling 325 minutes delayed.
Hilo International Airport in Hawaii ranked second, with an average delay of 4.23 minutes over 7,247 flights and 30,663 total minutes delayed.
McClellan Palomar Airport in California and Saipan International Airport in the Northern Mariana Islands tied for third, each averaging 4.65 minutes. McClellan Palomar handled 216 flights with 1,004 total minutes delayed, while Saipan recorded 398 flights and 1,850 minutes delayed.
Other airports among the most punctual included Dillingham Airport in Hawaii, averaging 5.08 minutes across 477 flights for 2,422 total minutes; Lihue Airport in Hawaii at 5.16 minutes over 17,253 flights totaling 89,005 minutes; Kahului Airport in Hawaii at 5.40 minutes across 28,472 flights for 153,820 minutes; Adak Airport in Alaska at 5.46 minutes over 114 flights totaling 622 minutes; Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Pennsylvania at 5.80 minutes across 601 flights for 3,488 minutes; and Nome Airport in Alaska at 5.83 minutes over 785 flights totaling 4,576 minutes.
The findings show substantial variation in arrival punctuality depending on airport size and location, with many smaller regional facilities appearing more vulnerable to operational constraints.