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Spirit Airlines Leads 2025 U.S. Flight-Delay Rankings with 58-Minute Average

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  Published in Travel and Leisure on Monday, December 15th 2025 at 9:14 GMT by Travel + Leisure

Travel + Leisure’s 2025 Flight‑Delay Rankings: Which U.S. Airlines Are Most Troubled?
(Based on the Travel + Leisure article “Most Delayed U.S. Airlines in 2025: Flight‑Delay Rankings” – a comprehensive look at where the average delay time is highest for each carrier)

A Quick Snapshot

Travel + Leisure’s latest “Most Delayed U.S. Airlines” report lists the carriers that struggled the most with on‑time performance in 2025. Drawing on data from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), the article ranks airlines by the average delay per scheduled flight across the year. The rankings offer passengers a clearer picture of where delays are concentrated and highlight broader industry challenges such as crew shortages, aging fleets, and weather disruptions.

Methodology: How the Rankings Were Built

1. Data Source – The Bureau of Transportation Statistics aggregates flight data from every carrier operating in the United States. Travel + Leisure pulls the 2025 data set, which includes over 70 million domestic flights.
2. Metric Used – The key metric is the average delay in minutes per flight, calculated from departure time to actual departure time. Late arrivals, cancellations, and re‑routes that result in an early arrival time are treated as negative delays and offset the positive numbers, providing a balanced view.
3. Inclusion Criteria – All U.S. carriers operating more than 10,000 scheduled flights in 2025 are considered. Smaller regional airlines or those with limited operations are excluded to keep the ranking focused on mainstream carriers.
4. Seasonal Adjustment – The report adjusts for seasonality (e.g., winter weather peaks) so that an airline that schedules a large number of winter flights doesn’t automatically score worse because of unavoidable cold‑weather delays.

Travel + Leisure notes that the methodology aligns closely with the Air Travel Consumer Report’s annual “Flight‑Delay Index,” but the publication emphasizes a broader definition that includes “any delay or cancellation that pushes a flight beyond its scheduled departure.”

The Top 10 Most Delayed U.S. Airlines in 2025

While the article highlights the top five carriers as the “worst” performers, it also points out that even the lowest‑ranked carriers still experienced significant average delays compared to the overall U.S. average of about 25 minutes in 2025.

What Drives These Numbers?

The article offers a nuanced discussion of the underlying causes, many of which mirror issues that emerged during the COVID‑19 pandemic:

1. Weather Disruptions
   The winter of 2025 saw an unusually high number of nor’easter storms along the East Coast, severely affecting flights at New York, Washington, and Boston airports.
   Hurricane season also disrupted routes along the Gulf Coast and the Florida peninsula, especially for carriers like Frontier and Spirit that have a strong presence in those regions.

2. Crew Shortages and Scheduling Gaps
   Staffing shortages have become a persistent theme. With a generation of pilots approaching retirement and a shortage of fresh hires, airlines often schedule fewer crew on a flight than the safety minimum, forcing overnight delays or cancellations.
   The article cites a 2024 pilot labor contract that, while improving pay, also limited the number of pilots a carrier could schedule during peak season, pushing airlines into “tight” staffing windows.

3. Aging Aircraft Fleets
   Many carriers still operate older 737‑800s, 757s, and even 767s. Maintenance on these older models tends to be more frequent and costly, resulting in higher “technical delay” rates.
   Alaska’s fleet mix includes a significant proportion of 737‑800s and 737‑900s, both of which are aging and have a higher than average maintenance frequency.

4. Airport Congestion
   Major hubs—especially JFK, LGA, and ATL—suffer from runway capacity constraints. The article points out that some delays are “airport‑induced” and not entirely within the airline’s control.
   JetBlue, for instance, is heavily concentrated at JFK, leading to a higher average delay that is partly a function of runway congestion.

5. Infrastructure and Systemic Issues
   The article references a 2024 FAA study that found that 12 of the top 20 U.S. airports were at or near runway capacity.
   Some smaller carriers, like Allegiant, face delays due to less flexible scheduling because they operate fewer aircraft and rely on a tighter network.

What Do Passengers Need to Know?

• Choosing an Airline – If you’re planning a trip in 2025, consider airlines that rank lower on the delay list. While none of the major carriers are perfect, airlines like Southwest and United (in the article’s 7th and 8th spots) show comparatively better on‑time performance.
• Timing Your Flight – The article includes a link to a “Flight‑Delay Calendar” that shows which days and times have the highest delay probability. Early morning flights tend to be less delayed, whereas late‑afternoon slots see a spike in cancellations due to cascading weather.
• Alternative Airports – The “Airport Performance” section highlights that airports like Dulles and Baltimore are significantly less congested, offering a more reliable departure window for airlines that operate out of those hubs.

Industry Reactions

The article quotes a spokesperson from the Airlines for America (A4A) organization, who noted that “while 2025’s delays are higher than in recent years, the industry is investing heavily in crew training, fleet renewal, and advanced scheduling software to mitigate these issues.”

Frontier Airlines’ CEO, on the other hand, acknowledged that “the delays are a direct result of our expansion strategy, and we’re prioritizing crew hiring and maintenance upgrades to reduce the impact on our customers.”

Alaska Airlines issued a statement that “we are conducting a comprehensive review of our winter storm preparedness protocols to limit the disruption caused by extreme weather.”

Looking Forward: What’s Next?

Travel + Leisure anticipates that the trend of rising delays may level off in 2026 as airlines complete their fleet renewal programs and the pilot shortage stabilizes. The article references a forthcoming report by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration that will examine how emerging technologies—like predictive maintenance analytics and real‑time crew management systems—could further improve on‑time performance.

Final Takeaway

Travel + Leisure’s 2025 flight‑delay rankings paint a clear picture: while most U.S. airlines experience delays, a small group—most notably Spirit, Frontier, and Alaska—continues to struggle disproportionately. The underlying factors span weather, staffing, aging fleets, and airport congestion. For passengers, the lesson is simple: choose a carrier that consistently performs better, book flights early in the day, and stay informed about weather and airport traffic through the resources linked in the original article. By staying proactive, travelers can minimize the frustration that comes with delayed flights—an ever‑present reality in the modern aviation landscape.