American Airlines On-Time Performance and Delays
Ranked 9th of 14 US airlines for on-time arrivals
Data through July 2026 · Last updated October 18, 2026
American Airlines ranked 9th of 14 reporting airlines for punctuality, with 74.6% of flights arriving on time in the last 12 months.
That is 3.1 points below the US average of 77.6%, and 2.2% of its 987,645 scheduled flights were cancelled.
The biggest share of its delay minutes (47%) was put down to late-arriving aircraft.
October has been the best month (81% on time) and Sunday the weakest day of the week (71%).
American Airlines on-time performance by month
On-time arrival % each month, with the 12-month US average for reference.
Show the numbers
| Month | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay when late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026 | 66.9% | 2.3% | 95 min | 89,200 |
| June 2026 | 69.9% | 2.6% | 92 min | 86,464 |
| May 2026 | 76.5% | 1.5% | 83 min | 88,740 |
| April 2026 | 77.7% | 0.9% | 76 min | 84,538 |
| March 2026 | 74.7% | 2.0% | 88 min | 84,647 |
| February 2026 | 78.9% | 2.1% | 77 min | 72,786 |
| January 2026 | 76.0% | 8.9% | 94 min | 76,772 |
| December 2025 | 73.6% | 0.5% | 78 min | 79,859 |
| November 2025 | 76.5% | 2.1% | 80 min | 78,826 |
| October 2025 | 76.8% | 0.7% | 79 min | 85,483 |
| September 2025 | 79.1% | 1.2% | 85 min | 77,306 |
| August 2025 | 69.5% | 1.9% | 88 min | 83,024 |
| July 2025 | 65.0% | 3.4% | 95 min | 87,852 |
| June 2025 | 67.2% | 2.5% | 89 min | 85,419 |
| May 2025 | 73.5% | 1.5% | 80 min | 86,123 |
| April 2025 | 75.5% | 1.4% | 77 min | 82,261 |
| March 2025 | 76.9% | 1.5% | 81 min | 82,536 |
| February 2025 | 79.5% | 1.3% | 79 min | 69,876 |
| January 2025 | 80.8% | 3.7% | 80 min | 75,088 |
| December 2024 | 77.3% | 1.0% | 84 min | 77,737 |
| November 2024 | 83.5% | 0.6% | 72 min | 76,757 |
| October 2024 | 84.2% | 0.9% | 70 min | 86,812 |
| September 2024 | 80.7% | 0.7% | 71 min | 80,709 |
| August 2024 | 69.0% | 2.9% | 89 min | 85,963 |
Why American Airlines flights are delayed
Share of reported delay minutes by BTS cause category, last 12 months.
American Airlines: most and least punctual routes
Routes with at least 300 American Airlines flights in the last 12 months, by on-time arrival %.
80%+ good 70–79.9% fair <70% poor
Best time of day to fly American Airlines
On-time arrival % by scheduled departure hour (local time), last 24 months.
Best day of the week to fly American Airlines
On-time arrival % by day of departure, last 24 months.
American Airlines during holiday travel
On-time arrivals during holiday periods compared with all other days, last 24 months.
| Period | On time | vs other days | Cancelled | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving week (Tue before to Mon after) | 76.4% | -0.9 pts | 0.8% | 36,033 |
| Christmas & New Year (Dec 20 - Jan 3) | 72.9% | -4.4 pts | 1.2% | 75,244 |
| Summer peak (Jun 15 - Aug 15) | 66.5% | -10.8 pts | 2.7% | 352,629 |
| All other days | 77.3% | — | 1.9% | 1,500,872 |
American Airlines at its busiest airports
On-time departures from each airport, last 12 months.
| Airport | On-time departures | Cancelled | Departures |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) | 63.3% | 3.0% | 164,705 |
| Charlotte (CLT) | 74.2% | 1.7% | 113,873 |
| Miami (MIA) | 71.6% | 1.5% | 64,171 |
| Chicago (ORD) | 65.9% | 2.6% | 60,898 |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 78.5% | 1.1% | 56,671 |
| Philadelphia (PHL) | 75.7% | 2.2% | 46,717 |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 76.0% | 1.3% | 29,882 |
| Washington (DCA) | 75.8% | 2.5% | 27,795 |
| Orlando (MCO) | 74.0% | 1.9% | 19,605 |
| Boston (BOS) | 78.0% | 2.5% | 17,113 |
| New York (LGA) | 74.1% | 4.0% | 16,892 |
| New York (JFK) | 81.2% | 2.8% | 15,030 |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 79.5% | 1.8% | 14,083 |
| Tampa (TPA) | 77.1% | 2.0% | 13,875 |
| San Francisco (SFO) | 75.5% | 1.9% | 11,902 |