How reliable is John F Kennedy International Airport?

Across official performance history, flights from New York left within 15 minutes of schedule about 79% of the time over 718,756 flights. That's a respectable but unspectacular operational record. Pair it with an elevated cancellation rate of 2.7% — worth weighing alongside the on-time figure. When a departure does run late, the typical delay is around 14 minutes.

On weather, New York is an unusually calm-weather airport year-round. September is the calmest stretch for flying, scoring 96 out of 100 for favorable conditions, while March is the most disruptive at 85, driven mainly by low visibility & fog and high winds. The year is relatively steady, so no single month stands out as one to avoid on weather alone.

If you're connecting through JFK, give yourself room. Real itineraries sold through JFK bottom out around 46 minutes for a domestic connection, and international transfers around 125 minutes once immigration and a bag recheck are in the mix. Those are floors, not comfortable buffers — one inbound delay can erase them, so add margin when the connection matters.

None of this guarantees your specific flight — it’s the backdrop. To turn it into a booking, score real flights to New York, read how we weigh it all in how the Peace of Mind Score works, and brush up with how to pick a reliable flight and avoiding weather delays.