Catching a flight out of the Sunshine State? You might want to prepare for delays.
It’s advice that’s particularly applicable if you’re departing from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International —the airport with the highest rate of delays in the nation, according to a new study.
With nearly 32% of departing flights (29,235 out of 91,561) delayed in the past year, a recent report from SOAX reveals that — across the country — Fort Lauderdale- Hollywood ranks as America’s least reliable airport.
Consisting of four terminals with 66 gates, last year, 35 million passengers flew into, or out of, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International.
Air carrier delays (delays due to technical, security or runway issues) and delays caused by national aviation systems conditions, which can include nonextreme weather, airport operation matters, heavy traffic volume and air traffic control issues, were the primary causes.
To find the nation’s least reliable airports, researchers at SOAX analyzed flight data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics between April 2023 and March 2024. For their purposes, a flight was considered delayed if it left 15 minutes or more after its scheduled departure time.
And it’s not just Fort Lauderdale/ Hollywood you have to worry about — two other Florida airports also made the top 10.
Orlando International Airport in Florida came in fourth on the list, with a flight delay rate of 27%, or 45,171 out of 167,595 flights being delayed. And ranking sixth is Miami International Airport, where 25.5%, or 27,002 of its 105,843 flight departures, were delayed.
As home to 140 airports — 20 which have scheduled passenger service and general aviation services — Florida has the most international and domestic airports in the U.S.
This year, inclement weather caused its fair share of delays across the state.
In June, heavy rain and flooding caused 29 flights to be delayed and forced the cancellation of 77 flights out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, including 39 arrivals and 38 departures. Meanwhile, that same rain at Miami International Airport led to the cancellation of 187 flights and delayed 47 others.
During the busy July 4 travel period, a “facility environmental issue” prompted the FAA to call for a departure delay at Orlando International that resulted in 100 delayed and six canceled flights.
In early August as Hurricane Debby approached the state, more than 1,300 U.S. flights were canceled and more than 1,800 more were delayed, with the largest share of those disruptions out of Orlando International Airport — with 20% of its scheduled flights canceled and another 14% delayed.
Over at Miami International, there were 248 delays and 155 cancellations — and another 212 delays and 127 cancellations at Fort Lauderdale- Hollywood.
The other U.S. airports to make the top 10 for the highest rate of delays include, in second place, Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall in Maryland, with a delayed flight rate of nearly 29%. Aspen/Pitkin County Airport in Colorado takes third place, with 27.5% of departure flights delayed.
Chicago Midway International Airport in Illinois took fifth place, with a 26% delayed flight rate, and in seventh place is Harry Reid International Airport in Nevada with a rate of 25.1%. Denver International Airport in Colorado takes the eighth spot with 24.8% of departures delayed.
Dallas Love Field in Texas comes in ninth with a 23.7% rate, and rounding out the top 10 is Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in Texas, with 22.7% of flights delayed throughout the past year.
“Uncovering which airports have the highest rates of delays provides an important insight into their reliability,” said Stepan Solovev, CEO and cofounder of SOAX. “This ranking may inform your next travel plans to potentially avoid some of the high-ranking airports or help you to anticipate potential disruptions, as this will lead to a smoother and less stressful journey.”
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