Buffalo to New York

What the Data Says About BUF to LGA

The Buffalo to New York corridor (BUF → LGA) covers roughly 292 miles and is served by 8 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 8,006 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 85.1% on-time rate with an average delay of 84.5 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 3,803 flights were recorded on this pairing — 147 cancelled (3.9%) and 9 diverted (0.2%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 8 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 8,006 total flights analyzed, the 85.1% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 84.5-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, Sep 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 97% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 69% on-time — a 28-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the BUF to LGA route, the combination of a 85.1% on-time rate, 84.5-minute average delay, 3.9% recent cancellation rate, and 8 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.