Buffalo to New York

What the Data Says About BUF to JFK

The Buffalo to New York corridor (BUF → JFK) covers roughly 301 miles and is served by 19 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 13,149 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 82.1% on-time rate with an average delay of 87.9 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 4,190 flights were recorded on this pairing — 138 cancelled (3.3%) and 5 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 19 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 13,149 total flights analyzed, the 82.1% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 87.9-minute average delay applies only to flights that actually ran late, so it is not the average wait across all departures — the majority of flights on this route depart on time under the BTS definition of a delay (15+ minutes past schedule).

Looking at recent months, Nov 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 89% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 61% on-time — a 28-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the BUF to JFK route, the combination of a 82.1% on-time rate, 87.9-minute average delay, 3.3% recent cancellation rate, and 19 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.