Airport · BUF · Buffalo, New York

Buffalo, NY

Buffalo, NY posts bottom-quartile on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a high-volume U.S. airport. According to the U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, drawn from 221,909 flights (2020–2025); its biggest delay driver is late aircraft.

Compiled by PlainFlights Editorial, Flight Performance Editorial Team

Data updated 2026-06-13

80.6%
On-time: Top 81%
on-time, US airports: 76 min
Delay when late: 1.75%
Cancelled

Key Performance Metrics

Total Flights

221,909

Best Month

Sep 93.3%

Worst Month

Jul 88.4%

Delayed

42,968

Cancelled

3,878

60-65%

1
65-70%

4
70-75%

9
75-80%

48
80-85%

192
85-90%

116
90-95%

12

What this shows BUF is marked in the 80-85% band.

Delay Cause Breakdown

Top delay cause: Late Aircraft. Total delay minutes: 1,496,372.

Late Aircraft 42.0% (628,478 min)

Carrier 30.5% (456,068 min)

NAS (National Aviation System) 22.9% (342,879 min)

Weather 4.5% (67,429 min)

Security 0.1% (1,518 min)

Seasonal Performance Patterns

Monthly averages across all years of data. Best month: September (93.3% on-time). Most delays: July (88.4% on-time).

Month	Avg Flights	Avg Delayed	Avg Cancelled	On-Time %
December	2,974	642	79	90%
November	3,125	487	34	93%
October	3,316	518	14	93.2%
September	3,065	481	20	93.3%
August	3,301	767	41	89.6%
July	3,282	869	59	88.4%
June	3,034	767	51	89.2%
May	3,009	540	31	92.5%
April	3,025	511	121	92.8%
March	3,245	547	73	92.5%
February	2,759	496	43	91.8%
January	2,851	537	81	91.5%

Year-Over-Year Performance

Annual flight volume and on-time trends at BUF.

Year	Flights	Delayed	Cancelled	On-Time %
2025	41,311	4,201	433	89.8%
2024	44,333	3,954	492	91.1%
2023	41,692	3,908	445	90.6%
2022	40,178	3,869	1,145	90.4%
2021	28,735	2,115	230	92.6%
2020	25,660	903	1,133	96.5%

Cancellation & Diversion Analysis

Flight disruption statistics for Buffalo, NY.

Cancellation Rate

1.75%

3,878 of 221,909 flights

Diversion Rate

0.10%

211 of 221,909 flights

Delay Rate

19.4%

42,968 of 221,909 flights

Monthly Performance

Recent 24 months of flight data.

Period	Flights	Dep Delayed	Arr Delayed	Cancelled	Diverted
Dec 2025	3,294	469	555	90	3
Nov 2025	3,484	355	429	44	0
Oct 2025	3,742	352	429	11	1
Sep 2025	3,363	242	295	9	2
Aug 2025	3,768	415	475	19	10
Jul 2025	3,926	526	655	84	8
Jun 2025	3,544	427	580	53	3
May 2025	3,800	335	459	11	2
Apr 2025	3,442	236	367	13	2
Mar 2025	3,378	299	408	21	6
Feb 2025	2,781	290	364	39	3
Jan 2025	2,789	255	325	39	2
Dec 2024	3,470	413	450	10	5
Nov 2024	3,514	203	256	1	1
Oct 2024	4,062	235	313	20	0
Sep 2024	3,962	231	304	5	1
Aug 2024	4,132	485	620	78	12
Jul 2024	4,053	514	666	61	4
Jun 2024	3,829	415	544	34	2
May 2024	3,757	362	481	18	7
Apr 2024	3,572	262	341	13	5
Mar 2024	3,677	310	394	13	1
Feb 2024	3,145	217	274	14	2
Jan 2024	3,160	307	386	225	2

Top Routes from BUF

Busiest routes to and from Buffalo, NY.

Route	Flights	On-Time	Distance
JFK (New York) → BUF (Buffalo)	13,155	78.5%	301 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → JFK (New York)	13,149	82.1%	301 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → ORD (Chicago)	9,831	81.5%	474 mi
ORD (Chicago) → BUF (Buffalo)	9,803	79%	474 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → BWI (Baltimore)	9,345	87.7%	281 mi
BWI (Baltimore) → BUF (Buffalo)	9,340	74.6%	281 mi
MCO (Orlando) → BUF (Buffalo)	8,753	75.2%	1,011 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → MCO (Orlando)	8,743	79.4%	1,011 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → LGA (New York)	8,006	85.1%	292 mi
LGA (New York) → BUF (Buffalo)	8,006	84%	292 mi
DTW (Detroit) → BUF (Buffalo)	7,311	84.5%	241 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → DTW (Detroit)	7,310	87.7%	241 mi
ATL (Atlanta) → BUF (Buffalo)	6,977	82.7%	712 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → ATL (Atlanta)	6,948	82.9%	712 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → CLT (Charlotte)	6,416	81.5%	546 mi
CLT (Charlotte) → BUF (Buffalo)	6,415	77.9%	546 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → DCA (Washington)	5,325	78.1%	296 mi
DCA (Washington) → BUF (Buffalo)	5,321	76.3%	296 mi
MDW (Chicago) → BUF (Buffalo)	4,697	74.4%	468 mi
BUF (Buffalo) → MDW (Chicago)	4,668	85.2%	468 mi

Airports With a Similar On-Time Rate

Other U.S. airports nationwide whose on-time rate is closest to Buffalo, NY's 80.6%.

Mission/McAllen/Edinburg, TX

80.6% on-time 47,923 flights

Portsmouth, NH

80.6% on-time 4,468 flights

North Bend/Coos Bay, OR

80.6% on-time 4,337 flights

Nantucket, MA

80.5% on-time 17,080 flights

Hartford, CT

80.7% on-time 253,617 flights

Jackson, WY

80.7% on-time 64,902 flights

Other Airports in New York

Compare performance with other New York airports.

LGA 81.2%

New York, NY

New York · 1,574,867 flights

JFK 79.4%

New York, NY

New York · 1,274,816 flights

SYR 81.5%

Syracuse, NY

Syracuse · 131,663 flights

ALB 80.9%

Albany, NY

Albany · 129,222 flights

ROC 82%

Rochester, NY

Rochester · 126,934 flights

HPN 79.1%

White Plains, NY

White Plains · 117,692 flights

ISP 77.9%

Islip, NY

Islip · 54,300 flights

ELM 84.5%

Elmira/Corning, NY

Elmira/Corning · 13,181 flights

Keep exploring

More flight data around Buffalo, NY.

New York flight data

Statewide on-time and delay aggregates, plus every reporting airport in New York.

View NY data →

Airport rankings

See where BUF sits among U.S. airports on on-time rate and average delay.

Best on-time airports →

Compare airports

Put BUF head-to-head with another airport on delays and reliability.

Open comparison tool →

What the Data Says About BUF

Buffalo, NY in Buffalo, New York handled 221,909 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 80.6% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 42,968 experienced delays, 3,878 were cancelled, and 211 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.75%, the diversion rate to 0.10%, and the average delay when departures run late is 75.7 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing BUF against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at BUF, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 42.0% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 30.5% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 22.9%. Weather contributes 4.5% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.1%. Travelers often overestimate the weather share; the BTS categorization shows late-arriving aircraft and carrier operations as the larger contributors.

Seasonally, September runs the cleanest at BUF with a 93.3% on-time rate, while July is the roughest at 88.4% - a 5-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in October, when average flights hit 3,316. The busiest route connecting BUF is to JFK (New York), with 13,155 flights at a 78.5% on-time rate. Combine these numbers - 80.6% on-time, 75.7-minute average delay, 1.75% cancellation rate, and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Buffalo, NY.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the on-time performance rate at Buffalo, NY (BUF)? ▼

Buffalo, NY has an overall on-time departure rate of 80.6%. Out of 221,909 total flights tracked, 42,968 experienced delays and 3,878 were cancelled.

What is the most common cause of delays at BUF? ▼

The top delay cause at Buffalo, NY is Late Aircraft. Late Aircraft accounts for 42.0% of all delay minutes.

What is the average delay time at BUF? ▼

The average delay at Buffalo, NY is 75.7 minutes. This includes delays from carrier issues, weather, National Aviation System constraints, security, and late-arriving aircraft.

What is the best month to fly from BUF? ▼

Based on historical data, September has the best on-time performance at BUF with 93.3% of flights departing on time.

What is the worst month for delays at BUF? ▼

July tends to have the most delays at BUF, with an on-time rate of only 88.4%.

How many routes operate from BUF? ▼

Buffalo, NY serves at least 20 routes. The busiest route is JFK to BUF (New York - Buffalo) with 13,155 flights.

What is the cancellation rate at BUF? ▼

Buffalo, NY has a cancellation rate of 1.75%, based on 3,878 cancelled flights out of 221,909 total flights tracked.

Flight Guides

Data-driven guides to help you understand airport and flight performance.

Best & Worst Airlines for On-Time Performance

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Why Flights Get Cancelled

Cancellation causes broken down by data

How to Choose Reliable Flight Routes

Use delay data to pick flights that arrive on time

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Data Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), On-Time Performance Data (2020–2025). Statistics reflect cumulative performance across all available reporting periods. On-time rates exclude cancelled and diverted flights.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Using BUF's data

An airport-level on-time rate is a starting point, not a guarantee for your specific flight.

Check the busiest route from BUF before you book a connection. See top routes
Travel in September rather than July if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns
Scores vary by airline and route within the same airport; check the specific carrier you're flying. Browse airlines

On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers at this airport, not any single flight or airline.

All airports → | Rankings →

Data sourced from U.S. Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) On-Time Performance data. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFlights Editorial

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Airline on-time performance and operational reliability · 2025 Accessed 2026-07-23

Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. Airport figures are computed directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.