Route Reliability

Route reliability

Newark (EWR) to Los Angeles (LAX): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Newark, NJ (EWR) to Los Angeles, CA (LAX), September 2025 to August 2026.

Historical performance Official DOT data through August 2026 · Not live flight status

Newark, NJLos Angeles, CA

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Three-letter airport codes, nonstop U.S. domestic flights. One direction at a time.

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

EWR to LAX

Newark, NJ to Los Angeles, CA

On time
68.8%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
Cancelled
2.5%vs 1.9% U.S. average Worse than average
60+ min late
12.1%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
Scheduled flights
4,750in 12 months4 airlines
Most reliable airline
Alaska Airlines70.1% on time · 491 flights

On time less often than the U.S. average, with more cancellations.

Compared with all U.S. flights, September 2025 to August 2026. “About average” means within 1.5 points for on time, 0.3 for cancelled and 1 for 60+ minutes late.

Airlines on this route

Ranked by on-time arrival

Airlines from EWR to LAX, September 2025 to August 2026. Rates are shares of all scheduled flights.
Airline On time Cancelled 60+ min late Avg delay when late Diverted Flights
1. Alaska Airlines Most reliable 70.1% 2.6% 10.4% 71 min 0.2% 491
2. United Airlines 69.5% 1.9% 11.8% 84 min 0.2% 3,527
3. JetBlue Airways 68.1% 3.3% 13.8% 79 min 0.0% 480
4. Spirit Airlines Small sample (under 300 flights) 57.1% 7.9% 17.1% 82 min 0.8% 252

On time = arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. Avg delay when late = average arrival delay of flights 15+ minutes late. "Most reliable" needs at least 300 flights in 12 months. Tap a heading to sort.

What this means

Alaska Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • Alaska Airlines had the best on-time record from Newark (EWR) to Los Angeles (LAX): 70.1% of its 491 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 68.1% for JetBlue Airways.
  • 2.5% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 40), 0.6 points higher than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 12.1% of flights, about 1 in 8, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 82 min.
  • Overall, 68.8% of flights on this route arrived on time, 6.8 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, March was the most reliable month on this route (80.5% on time) and July the least reliable (63.3%).
  • Cancellations peaked in July, when 4.0% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 11 am to noon were the most punctual (84.2% on time); flights scheduled to depart 8 pm to 9 pm were the least (55.2%).
  • In the other direction, Los Angeles (LAX) to Newark (EWR), 76.5% of flights were on time and 2.1% were cancelled. Compare airlines LAX to EWR.

Best and worst months to fly EWR to LAX

Jan 72.2%
Feb 73.7%
Mar 80.5%
Apr 74.1%
May 72.8%
Jun 67.7%
Jul 63.3%
Aug 70.5%
Sep 75.8%
Oct 78.0%
Nov 77.2%
Dec 74.1%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 68.8%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 72.2% 1,106
February 73.7% 1,030
March 80.5% 1,200
April 74.1% 1,222
May 72.8% 1,324
June 67.7% 1,314
July 63.3% 1,361
August 70.5% 1,361
September 75.8% 1,478
October 78.0% 1,518
November 77.2% 1,385
December 74.1% 1,349
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Alaska Airlines October (81.5%) July (66.9%)
United Airlines March (81.0%) July (61.2%)
JetBlue Airways January (85.6%) July (63.1%)
Spirit Airlines June (90.0%) February (69.7%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 75.5%
Oct 64.7%
Nov 66.7%
Dec 63.0%
Jan 59.0%
Feb 66.9%
Mar 77.6%
Apr 79.4%
May 83.5%
Jun 66.7%
Jul 63.5%
Aug 61.8%
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
All airlines combined, September 2025 to August 2026. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Sep 2025 75.5% 466
Oct 2025 64.7% 482
Nov 2025 66.7% 468
Dec 2025 63.0% 476
Jan 2026 59.0% 327
Feb 2026 66.9% 302
Mar 2026 77.6% 366
Apr 2026 79.4% 355
May 2026 83.5% 339
Jun 2026 66.7% 381
Jul 2026 63.5% 403
Aug 2026 61.8% 385

Best and worst departure times

6a 77.8%
7a 71.3%
8a 58.9%
9a 69.0%
10a 75.1%
11a 84.2%
12p 71.9%
2p 71.4%
3p 74.6%
4p 59.2%
5p 69.2%
6p 65.0%
7p 70.4%
8p 55.2%
9p 55.7%
10p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at EWR, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing 6 am to 7 am 77.8% 392
Departing 7 am to 8 am 71.3% 425
Departing 8 am to 9 am 58.9% 180
Departing 9 am to 10 am 69.0% 464
Departing 10 am to 11 am 75.1% 365
Departing 11 am to noon 84.2% 114
Departing noon to 1 pm 71.9% 260
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 71.4% 370
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 74.6% 138
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 59.2% 206
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 69.2% 396
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 65.0% 460
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 70.4% 486
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 55.2% 415
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 55.7% 70
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm Insufficient sample 9
Woman at an airport window watching a plane take off
Photo: Depositphotos (licensed stock, illustrative only). Credits

Sources & data dates

Source
U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987-present)
Period
September 2025 to August 2026 (12 months); month-of-year patterns September 2023 to August 2026
Data through
August 2026
Processed
2026-11-03
Scope
Nonstop scheduled flights from Newark, NJ (EWR) to Los Angeles, CA (LAX), one direction. Airlines that report to the DOT only.
Method
Rates use all scheduled flights as the denominator; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Figures based on fewer than 50 scheduled flights are suppressed. Full methodology.

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