Travel Report: US Airports Prone to Flight Cancellations

InsureMyTrip issues its latest airport ranking with newly released data

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Mar 21, 2019, 11:34 ET

WARWICK, R.I., March 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- In an effort to help empower passengers to make more informed decisions when booking flights, InsureMyTrip Research reveals which of the country's busiest airports are more prone to flight cancellations and what passengers should know about airline cancellation policies.

Summary:

Data Source: InsureMyTrip Research and The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). BTS tracks the on-time performance of domestic flights operated by large air carriers. Rankings were based on the flight cancellation rate per airport for 2018. Airports on the list also reported 18,500 or more scheduled flights for 2018.

New York's LaGuardia reports the highest percentage of canceled flights for the second year in a row. Winter Storm Grayson was a contributing factor in 2018, forcing the airport to temporarily shut down.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) makes an on-time performance comeback in 2018. A power outage at ATL steered higher cancellation numbers in 2017.
Roughly one percent of scheduled flights at Fort Lauderdale International called it quits in 2018. That's an improvement from 2.7 percent in 2017.
Severe weather was to blame for most cancelation blocks in 2018. Hurricane Florence, Hurricane Michael, and Winter Storm Grayson forced groundings at many Eastern U.S. airports and residual delays nationwide.
Salt Lake City International maintains a consistent reputation for punctuality. The airport celebrates another year of shocking low cancellations.
InsureMyTrip anticipates the grounding of Boeing Max 737 aircraft will result in a higher number of reported flight delays and cancellations for hub airports in 2019. Those on-time performance records have yet to be submitted.

This ranking shows U.S. airport with the most and least percentage of flights canceled. This updated list is based on new data released this week, which now includes all of 2018.

Rank	Code	Airport
1 (Most)	LGA	New York, NY: LaGuardia
2	ORF	Norfolk, VA: Norfolk International
3	CHS	Charleston, SC: Charleston AFB/International
4	ROC	Rochester, NY: Greater Rochester International
5	PHL	Philadelphia, PA: Philadelphia International
6	EWR	Newark, NJ: Newark Liberty International
7	PVD	Providence, RI: Theodore Francis Green
8	DCA	Washington, DC: Ronald Reagan Washington National
9	RIC	Richmond, VA: Richmond International
10	RDU	Raleigh/Durham, NC: Raleigh-Durham International
11	BUF	Buffalo, NY: Buffalo Niagara International
12	CLT	Charlotte, NC: Charlotte Douglas International
13	JFK	New York, NY: John F. Kennedy International
14	BOS	Boston, MA: Logan International
15	BDL	Hartford, CT: Bradley International
16	MDW	Chicago, IL: Chicago Midway International
17	GRR	Grand Rapids, MI: Gerald R. Ford International
18	ORD	Chicago, IL: Chicago O'Hare International
19	BWI	Baltimore, MD: Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall
20	CLE	Cleveland, OH: Cleveland-Hopkins International
21	CMH	Columbus, OH: John Glenn Columbus International
22	PIT	Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh International
23	SDF	Louisville, KY: Louisville International-Standiford Field
24	CVG	Cincinnati, OH: Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International
25	DFW	Dallas/Fort Worth, TX: Dallas/Fort Worth International
26	BHM	Birmingham, AL: Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International
27	JAX	Jacksonville, FL: Jacksonville International
28	PBI	West Palm Beach/Palm Beach, FL: Palm Beach International
29	MKE	Milwaukee, WI: General Mitchell International
30	IND	Indianapolis, IN: Indianapolis International
31	MEM	Memphis, TN: Memphis International
32	BUR	Burbank, CA: Bob Hope
33	IAD	Washington, DC: Washington Dulles International
34	BNA	Nashville, TN: Nashville International
35	HOU	Houston, TX: William P Hobby
36	STL	St. Louis, MO: St Louis Lambert International
37	OMA	Omaha, NE: Eppley Airfield
38	MCI	Kansas City, MO: Kansas City International
39	DAL	Dallas, TX: Dallas Love Field
40	SFO	San Francisco, CA: San Francisco International
41	RSW	Fort Myers, FL: Southwest Florida International
42	OKC	Oklahoma City, OK: Will Rogers World
43	MSY	New Orleans, LA: Louis Armstrong New Orleans International
44	ANC	Anchorage, AK: Ted Stevens Anchorage International
45	OAK	Oakland, CA: Metropolitan Oakland International
46	TPA	Tampa, FL: Tampa International
47	MCO	Orlando, FL: Orlando International
48	MIA	Miami, FL: Miami International
49	MSP	Minneapolis, MN: Minneapolis-St Paul International
50	FLL	Fort Lauderdale, FL: Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International
51	DTW	Detroit, MI: Detroit Metro Wayne County
52	IAH	Houston, TX: George Bush Intercontinental/Houston
53	AUS	Austin, TX: Austin - Bergstrom International
54	ABQ	Albuquerque, NM: Albuquerque International Sunport
55	SAT	San Antonio, TX: San Antonio International
56	SAN	San Diego, CA: San Diego International
57	SJU	San Juan, PR: Luis Munoz Marin International
58	SJC	San Jose, CA: Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International
59	LAX	Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles International
60	HNL	Honolulu, HI: Daniel K Inouye International
61	TUS	Tucson, AZ: Tucson International
62	GEG	Spokane, WA: Spokane International
63	DEN	Denver, CO: Denver International
64	ONT	Ontario, CA: Ontario International
65	PHX	Phoenix, AZ: Phoenix Sky Harbor International
66	LAS	Las Vegas, NV: McCarran International
67	SNA	Santa Ana, CA: John Wayne Airport-Orange County
68	SEA	Seattle, WA: Seattle/Tacoma International
69	RNO	Reno, NV: Reno/Tahoe International
70	ATL	Atlanta, GA: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International
71	PDX	Portland, OR: Portland International
72	SMF	Sacramento, CA: Sacramento International
73	OGG	Kahului, HI: Kahului Airport
74	BOI	Boise, ID: Boise Air Terminal
75 (Least)	SLC	Salt Lake City, UT: Salt Lake City International

Data Source: InsureMyTrip Research and The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). BTS tracks the on-time performance of domestic flights operated by large air carriers. Rankings were based on the flight cancellation rate per airport. Airports on the list also reported 18,500 or more scheduled flights for 2018.

Airline Cancellation Policies
Flight cancellation policies vary by airline and circumstance. When an airline cancels a flight, most will try to rebook passengers on the next available flight.

Airlines are not required to reimburse travelers for losses incurred as a result of a canceled flight. These losses may include such as a prepaid, non-refundable:

Hotel room
All-inclusive vacation or resort
A cruise
A tour or safari
Concert or entertainment tickets

Travelers concerned about protecting any non-refundable, pre-paid trip expenses should buy travel insurance.

To schedule an interview with an expert or to request specific research data or methodology, please contact [email protected].

About InsureMyTrip

It's simple. InsureMyTrip finds you the right travel insurance plan, every time. InsureMyTrip is the authority on travel insurance. We are committed to empowering travelers to make the best possible insurance decisions by leveraging our technology, data intelligence, and expertise.

SOURCE InsureMyTrip