Route reliability

New York (JFK) to Boston (BOS): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from New York, NY (JFK) to Boston, MA (BOS), September 2025 to August 2026.

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

New York, NYBoston, MA

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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

JFK to BOS

New York, NY to Boston, MA

On time
68.5%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
Cancelled
5.0%vs 1.9% U.S. average Worse than average
60+ min late
12.5%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
Scheduled flights
5,615in 12 months3 airlines
Most reliable airline
Republic Airways71.8% on time · 2,858 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 JFK to BOS, 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. Republic Airways Operating carrier; sold as American Eagle, Delta Connection, United Express Most reliable 71.8% 5.1% 10.7% 77 min 0.0% 2,858
2. Delta Air Lines 66.3% 3.5% 15.8% 87 min 0.0% 368
3. JetBlue Airways 64.8% 5.1% 14.0% 79 min 0.0% 2,389

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

Republic Airways has the strongest record on this route.

  • Republic Airways had the best on-time record from New York (JFK) to Boston (BOS): 71.8% of its 2,858 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 64.8% for JetBlue Airways.
  • 5.0% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 20), 3.1 points higher than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 12.5% of flights, about 1 in 8, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 79 min.
  • Overall, 68.5% of flights on this route arrived on time, 7.1 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, November was the most reliable month on this route (81.0% on time) and July the least reliable (59.3%).
  • Cancellations peaked in July, when 8.2% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 8 am to 9 am were the most punctual (86.8% on time); flights scheduled to depart 4 pm to 5 pm were the least (47.3%).
  • In the other direction, Boston (BOS) to New York (JFK), 70.0% of flights were on time and 5.6% were cancelled. Compare airlines BOS to JFK.

Best and worst months to fly JFK to BOS

Jan 72.6%
Feb 75.4%
Mar 74.5%
Apr 79.9%
May 74.7%
Jun 69.2%
Jul 59.3%
Aug 66.9%
Sep 68.8%
Oct 78.7%
Nov 81.0%
Dec 70.8%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 68.5%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 72.6% 1,389
February 75.4% 1,338
March 74.5% 1,382
April 79.9% 1,310
May 74.7% 1,390
June 69.2% 1,339
July 59.3% 1,382
August 66.9% 1,402
September 68.8% 1,539
October 78.7% 1,581
November 81.0% 1,372
December 70.8% 1,309
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Republic Airways November (84.2%) July (68.7%)
Delta Air Lines November (87.0%) July (43.0%)
JetBlue Airways April (77.3%) July (51.2%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 64.7%
Oct 67.1%
Nov 71.1%
Dec 63.9%
Jan 70.7%
Feb 66.5%
Mar 69.4%
Apr 80.4%
May 81.5%
Jun 72.7%
Jul 53.4%
Aug 61.3%
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 64.7% 547
Oct 2025 67.1% 556
Nov 2025 71.1% 450
Dec 2025 63.9% 432
Jan 2026 70.7% 481
Feb 2026 66.5% 462
Mar 2026 69.4% 513
Apr 2026 80.4% 443
May 2026 81.5% 437
Jun 2026 72.7% 428
Jul 2026 53.4% 427
Aug 2026 61.3% 439

Best and worst departure times

6a 85.4%
7a 88.2%
8a 86.8%
9a 82.2%
10a 78.0%
11a 78.2%
12p 74.2%
1p 65.4%
2p 64.3%
3p 52.8%
4p 47.3%
5p 54.5%
6p 59.0%
7p 59.0%
8p 61.4%
9p 64.7%
10p 60.3%
11p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at JFK, 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 85.4% 739
Departing 7 am to 8 am 88.2% 93
Departing 8 am to 9 am 86.8% 272
Departing 9 am to 10 am 82.2% 546
Departing 10 am to 11 am 78.0% 268
Departing 11 am to noon 78.2% 78
Departing noon to 1 pm 74.2% 132
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 65.4% 399
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 64.3% 456
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 52.8% 267
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 47.3% 182
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 54.5% 682
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 59.0% 227
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 59.0% 100
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 61.4% 158
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 64.7% 538
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 60.3% 471
Departing 11 pm to midnight Insufficient sample 7
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 New York, NY (JFK) to Boston, MA (BOS), 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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