Airlines began canceling flights Friday to comply with the Federal Aviation Administration’s order to reduce flights by 4% at high-traffic airports. The cuts are scheduled to gradually increase, reaching a 10% reduction in capacity at 40 airports by next Friday. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics provides data on the number of flights and average delays for U.S. carriers. The Get the Facts Data Team analyzed data to see how busy these airports were prior to the capacity reduction.Here’s a look at how these airports performed before the FAA’s reduction order. How busy are the airports?Out of the 40 airports named by the FAA, 30 are designated as "core" airports.The busiest airport is the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta. It had 376,418 departures by U.S. carriers — both domestic and international — in 2024. That’s an average of more than a thousand departures per day. Almost 99% of those were passenger flights.The list from the FAA also included less-busy airports not in the core 30, like Portland International in Oregon, which had more than 14,200 flights departing in 2024 for an average of 39 flights a day.One airport, Teterboro in New Jersey, was on the list, but does not have data available from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. It does not offer scheduled airline service, according to its website. How long were arrival and departure delays before? Among the 40 airports, Newark Liberty International had the longest average arrival delays, at 88.96 minutes, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Data for 2025 is from August 2024 to July 2025, the most recent figures BTS provides. Dallas/Fort Worth International was just 36 milliseconds shorter than Newark, having an average delay of 88.6 minutes. A quarter of these airports had an average arrival delay of less than an hour. Ted Stevens Anchorage International had the shortest average delay for arrivals at 47.1 minutes. Washington Dulles International had the longest departure delays at 85.47 minutes, while Oakland International had the shortest departure delay at 50.84 minutes. Only six airports had an average departure delay of less than an hour: Chicago Midway International, Dallas Love Field, Seattle-Tacoma International, William P. Hobby, Daniel K. Inouye International, and Oakland International. Were flights leaving on time? Six airports had at least 85% of their departures leave on time. Daniel K. Inouye International had the highest percentage at 88%, followed by Indianapolis International, Louisville Muhammad Ali International, Ontario International and Portland International, all at 86%. Honolulu also had the highest percentage of arrivals on time at 87%. Dallas Fort Worth had the lowest among the other airports, with 71% of their departure flights leaving on time. Ronald Reagan Washington National and Newark Liberty International airports had the lowest on-time arrivals at 72%. Search the table below to see the percentage of flights that left on time for departures and arrivals. PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiPiFmdW5jdGlvbigpeyJ1c2Ugc3RyaWN0Ijt3aW5kb3cuYWRkRXZlbnRMaXN0ZW5lcigibWVzc2FnZSIsKGZ1bmN0aW9uKGUpe2lmKHZvaWQgMCE9PWUuZGF0YVsiZGF0YXdyYXBwZXItaGVpZ2h0Il0pe3ZhciB0PWRvY3VtZW50LnF1ZXJ5U2VsZWN0b3JBbGwoImlmcmFtZSIpO2Zvcih2YXIgYSBpbiBlLmRhdGFbImRhdGF3cmFwcGVyLWhlaWdodCJdKWZvcih2YXIgcj0wO3I8dC5sZW5ndGg7cisrKXtpZih0W3JdLmNvbnRlbnRXaW5kb3c9PT1lLnNvdXJjZSl0W3JdLnN0eWxlLmhlaWdodD1lLmRhdGFbImRhdGF3cmFwcGVyLWhlaWdodCJdW2FdKyJweCJ9fX0pKX0oKTs8L3NjcmlwdD4=
WASHINGTON — Airlines began canceling flights Friday to comply with the Federal Aviation Administration’s order to reduce flights by 4% at high-traffic airports.
The cuts are scheduled to gradually increase, reaching a 10% reduction in capacity at 40 airports by next Friday.
The Bureau of Transportation Statistics provides data on the number of flights and average delays for U.S. carriers. The Get the Facts Data Team analyzed data to see how busy these airports were prior to the capacity reduction.
Here’s a look at how these airports performed before the .
How busy are the airports?
Out of the 40 airports named by the FAA, as "core" airports.
The busiest airport is the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta. It had 376,418 departures by U.S. carriers — both domestic and international — in 2024. That’s an average of more than a thousand departures per day. Almost 99% of those were passenger flights.
The list from the FAA also included less-busy airports not in the core 30, like Portland International in Oregon, which had more than 14,200 flights departing in 2024 for an average of 39 flights a day.
One airport, Teterboro in New Jersey, was on the list, but does not have data available from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. It does not offer scheduled airline service, .
How long were arrival and departure delays before?
Among the 40 airports, Newark Liberty International had the longest average arrival delays, at 88.96 minutes, according to the . Data for 2025 is from August 2024 to July 2025, the most recent figures BTS provides.
Dallas/Fort Worth International was just 36 milliseconds shorter than Newark, having an average delay of 88.6 minutes.
A quarter of these airports had an average arrival delay of less than an hour. Ted Stevens Anchorage International had the shortest average delay for arrivals at 47.1 minutes.
Washington Dulles International had the longest departure delays at 85.47 minutes, while Oakland International had the shortest departure delay at 50.84 minutes.
Only six airports had an average departure delay of less than an hour: Chicago Midway International, Dallas Love Field, Seattle-Tacoma International, William P. Hobby, Daniel K. Inouye International, and Oakland International.
Were flights leaving on time?
Six airports had at least 85% of their departures leave on time. Daniel K. Inouye International had the highest percentage at 88%, followed by Indianapolis International, Louisville Muhammad Ali International, Ontario International and Portland International, all at 86%. Honolulu also had the highest percentage of arrivals on time at 87%.
Dallas Fort Worth had the lowest among the other airports, with 71% of their departure flights leaving on time. Ronald Reagan Washington National and Newark Liberty International airports had the lowest on-time arrivals at 72%.
Search the table below to see the percentage of flights that left on time for departures and arrivals.
