How reliable is John F Kennedy International Airport?
Flights from JFK departed within 15 minutes of schedule in 79% of 697,763 flights in official BTS history — and weather is calmest in Sep. Here’s the full picture before you book.
Reliability score
on-time, cancellations & delays
Weather favorability
year-round climate
Origin-airport operations
What the departure punctuality at JFK looks like
On-time departures
across 697,763 flights
Source: BTS Airport Operations · data through 2026-06-25. Role-specific BTS departure history; advisory context, not a guarantee for any flight.
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Weather by month
When the weather works for you at New York
A calm-weather score (0–100) for each month from decades of airport observations — how often conditions disrupt flying, not temperature. Higher is calmer.
Calmest month
Calmest flying weather of the year · 96/100 favorability
Roughest month
Most disruptive — low visibility & fog, high winds · 85/100 favorability
Connecting through JFK
How much layover you really need
Allow at least this between domestic flights at JFK. Below it, one small delay risks a misconnect.
International transfers add immigration and bag recheck — give yourself this buffer at JFK or more.
PlaneSane connection-time estimate tuned for JFK's terminal layout. We score every connecting itinerary against conservative connection floors.
The read on JFK
What the numbers say about flying through 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 697,763 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. A domestic connection wants at least about 50 minutes, and international transfer wants roughly 105 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 PlaneSane Score works, and brush up with how to pick a reliable flight and avoiding weather delays.
Common questions about JFK
- How reliable is John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK)?
- Flights from New York left within 15 minutes of schedule roughly 79% of the time across 697,763 flights of official history — a respectable but unspectacular operational record. The cancellation rate runs about 2.7%. It's advisory context, not a guarantee for any single flight.
- What is the best month to fly from JFK for good weather?
- September has the calmest flying weather at John F Kennedy International Airport. March is the most disruptive, mainly from low visibility & fog and high winds.
- How much layover time do you need at JFK?
- Allow at least about 50 minutes for a domestic connection and about 105 minutes for an international one as a floor. These are minimums, not comfortable buffers — a single inbound delay can wipe them out, so add margin when you can.
Planning a trip through New York?
Score real flights to and from JFK on reliability, weather, and connection safety — not just price.