Route reliability

Los Angeles (LAX) to Boston (BOS): which airline is most on time?

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

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

Los Angeles, CABoston, 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

LAX to BOS

Los Angeles, CA to Boston, MA

On time
74.8%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
Cancelled
1.8%vs 1.9% U.S. average About average
60+ min late
9.3%vs 8.1% U.S. average Worse than average
Scheduled flights
4,797in 12 months4 airlines
Most reliable airline
United Airlines84.4% on time · 731 flights

On time about as often as the U.S. average, with a typical cancellation rate.

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 LAX 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. United Airlines Most reliable 84.4% 1.0% 5.2% 71 min 0.1% 731
2. Delta Air Lines 74.0% 2.2% 10.2% 89 min 0.2% 1,240
3. American Airlines 72.9% 1.6% 11.4% 94 min 0.0% 1,184
4. JetBlue Airways 72.4% 2.1% 8.8% 66 min 0.1% 1,642

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

United Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • United Airlines had the best on-time record from Los Angeles (LAX) to Boston (BOS): 84.4% of its 731 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 72.4% for JetBlue Airways.
  • 1.8% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 56), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 9.3% of flights, about 1 in 11, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 80 min.
  • Overall, 74.8% of flights on this route arrived on time, 0.8 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, November was the most reliable month on this route (84.4% on time) and July the least reliable (74.5%).
  • Cancellations peaked in February, when 2.7% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 11 pm to midnight were the most punctual (87.4% on time); flights scheduled to depart 10 am to 11 am were the least (59.8%).
  • In the other direction, Boston (BOS) to Los Angeles (LAX), 72.2% of flights were on time and 1.8% were cancelled. Compare airlines BOS to LAX.

Best and worst months to fly LAX to BOS

Jan 78.5%
Feb 81.9%
Mar 82.1%
Apr 81.8%
May 76.5%
Jun 79.2%
Jul 74.5%
Aug 78.5%
Sep 79.0%
Oct 81.5%
Nov 84.4%
Dec 76.8%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 74.8%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 78.5% 968
February 81.9% 924
March 82.1% 1,095
April 81.8% 1,070
May 76.5% 1,237
June 79.2% 1,262
July 74.5% 1,353
August 78.5% 1,370
September 79.0% 1,166
October 81.5% 1,257
November 84.4% 1,099
December 76.8% 1,085
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
United Airlines April (90.9%) July (79.0%)
Delta Air Lines November (84.6%) May (75.4%)
American Airlines November (83.6%) July (69.8%)
JetBlue Airways March (82.6%) December (69.7%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 73.0%
Oct 71.5%
Nov 78.7%
Dec 75.0%
Jan 70.8%
Feb 72.7%
Mar 76.3%
Apr 76.4%
May 82.8%
Jun 80.4%
Jul 67.7%
Aug 72.9%
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 73.0% 363
Oct 2025 71.5% 403
Nov 2025 78.7% 376
Dec 2025 75.0% 380
Jan 2026 70.8% 373
Feb 2026 72.7% 344
Mar 2026 76.3% 389
Apr 2026 76.4% 364
May 2026 82.8% 400
Jun 2026 80.4% 453
Jul 2026 67.7% 483
Aug 2026 72.9% 469

Best and worst departure times

6a 85.8%
7a 80.8%
8a 78.6%
9a 64.9%
10a 59.8%
11a 75.6%
12p 61.9%
1p 68.3%
2p 73.0%
3p 66.0%
4p Insufficient sample
8p 78.0%
9p 81.8%
10p 77.2%
11p 87.4%
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at LAX, 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 85.8% 365
Departing 7 am to 8 am 80.8% 422
Departing 8 am to 9 am 78.6% 716
Departing 9 am to 10 am 64.9% 205
Departing 10 am to 11 am 59.8% 497
Departing 11 am to noon 75.6% 131
Departing noon to 1 pm 61.9% 181
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 68.3% 382
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 73.0% 159
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 66.0% 362
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm Insufficient sample 6
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 78.0% 82
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 81.8% 499
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 77.2% 544
Departing 11 pm to midnight 87.4% 246
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 Los Angeles, CA (LAX) 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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