United States Airport Research

Flight cancellation policies vary by airline and circumstance. When an airline cancels a flight due to bad weather, 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, including:

• Hotel fees
• All-inclusive vacation or resort fees
• Cruise payment
• A pre-paid tour or safari
• Concert or entertainment tickets

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

In an effort to help empower passengers to make more informed decisions while traveling during the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season, InsureMyTrip predicts which US airports are most prone to delays and cancellations and what passengers should know about airline policies.

Summary:

• Researchers ranked the on-time performance for the busiest airports in the Eastern US, the part of the country that is most impacted by tropical storms.*
• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is ranked the best overall for handling delays and cancellations during hurricane season. It is also the busiest.
• Newark Liberty International, LaGuardia, and John F. Kennedy International are ranked the worst overall for delays and cancellations during hurricane season. All three airports are twice as likely to report a weather delay than any other airport on the list.
• Passengers should anticipate flight disruptions when a storm develops. Nationwide, flight cancellations soared for major US airports in August and September last year due to storms.

Overall Ranking (Worst to Best)
1 Newark, NJ: Newark Liberty International
2 New York, NY: LaGuardia
3 New York, NY: John F. Kennedy International
4 Houston, TX: George Bush Intercontinental/Houston
5 Washington, DC: Ronald Reagan Washington National
6 Dallas/Fort Worth, TX: Dallas/Fort Worth International
7 Fort Lauderdale, FL: Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International
8 Philadelphia, PA: Philadelphia International
9 Boston, MA: Logan International
10 Baltimore, MD: Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall
11 Dallas, TX: Dallas Love Field
12 Orlando, FL: Orlando International
13 Houston, TX: William P Hobby
14 Miami, FL: Miami International
15 Washington, DC: Washington Dulles International
16 Fort Myers, FL: Southwest Florida International
17 Raleigh/Durham, NC: Raleigh-Durham International
18 Austin, TX: Austin - Bergstrom International
19 Tampa, FL: Tampa International
20 Charlotte, NC: Charlotte Douglas International
21 Pittsburgh, PA: Pittsburgh International
22 Nashville, TN: Nashville International
23 San Antonio, TX: San Antonio International
24 New Orleans, LA: Louis Armstrong New Orleans International
25 Atlanta, GA: Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International

Methodology
*Airports were ranked by the InsureMyTrip data team. Data combined three years of on-time performance data for the 25 busiest airports (based on the volume of flight operations) located in Eastern US. On-time performance data included weather delays for airports — including those attributed to extreme weather conditions and delays under the control of the National Airspace System (NAS). The proportion of weather delays to the number of flights was also calculated in addition to the overall number of delays and minutes of delays. Researchers also reviewed the percentage of cancellations (domestic arrivals and departures). Data was obtained by the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), the agency that tracks the on-time performance of domestic flights operated by large air carriers.

Researchers evaluated on-time data for selected airports during the 2015, 2016, and 2017 hurricane season. The official hurricane season runs from June 1st to November 30th (Source: NOAA).

Peak months for hurricane and tropical storm activity also appears to correlate with a higher number of canceled flights nationwide. For example, the highest percentage of all flights canceled in 2017 were reported during August and September. These months also experienced high storm activity along the Atlantic and Gulf Coast.

Top reasons given for a flight cancellation in 2017 by all reportable US airports.

Flight data obtained by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. National Aviation System cancellations can also be due to weather.

InsureMyTrip Research predicts these airports will be more stressful for travelers this holiday due to the likelihood of canceled flights based on previously reported data for this year.

This table contains data for non-stop domestic flights by major air carriers collected in 2017 thus far by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

*Data excludes over 1,000 canceled flights due to the power outage of December, 17th 2017 at Hartsfield-Jackson International. Those numbers have not been collected yet.

Summary

• New York's LaGuardia reports the highest percentage of canceled flights in 2017. Winter Storm Stella was a contributing factor, causing the number of grounded flights to soar last March.
• For the first time in five years, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) reports more flight cancellations than Chicago O'Hare International (ORD). December's power outage at ATL contributed to the spike. Data analysts predicted this outcome.
• Despite the rise in canceled flights for Atlanta, the airport was average, in terms of percentages — with 1.49 percent of scheduled departures calling it quits.
• Bad weather is the top reason for flight delays and cancellations.
• Overall, flight delays are far more common than canceled flights.
• The list shows the airports with the biggest percentages of flights canceled in 2017.

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Data Source: The U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) tracks the on-time performance of domestic flights operated by large air carriers.

Summary

• For the first time in five years, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) is reporting more flight cancellations than Chicago O'Hare International (ORD) and this doesn't even include the power outage cancellations from this week.
• Weather is the top reason for flight cancellations and delays nationwide.
• If a flight is canceled, most airlines will rebook travelers on next available flight at no additional charge. However, airlines are not required to reimburse travelers for losses incurred as a result of a canceled flight.