Colorado and New York-Area Airports Have the Most Miserable Tarmac Times

Flight delays are annoying, but most travelers would agree that sitting on a plane stuck on the tarmac is one of the worst situations — and it was more common early this year.

A new LendingTree study found that the percentage of regularly scheduled domestic flights that sat on the tarmac for 61 minutes or longer jumped by 19.42% between January and February 2023 and January and February 2024, according to the latest available Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) data. Travelers in some airports and with certain airlines are more likely to experience these delays than others.

Find out where tarmac delays are more common, along with tips on reducing your chances of — and protecting yourself financially from — flight delays.

Key findings

• The percentage of domestic flights on the tarmac for at least 61 minutes increased by 19.42% between early 2023 and early 2024. In January and February 2024 (the latest available data), 1.23% of flights were delayed on the tarmac by at least 61 minutes — up from 1.03% in the first two months of 2023. Across 2023, 0.90% of domestic flights were delayed for at least 61 minutes on the tarmac.
• Across the 100 airports with the most tarmac delays in 2023, Colorado and New York-area airports had the highest likelihood of them. Seven of the 10 airports with the highest percentage of flights that spent at least 61 minutes on the tarmac were in Colorado or New York (or the area). Yampa Valley Regional Airport in Hayden, Colo., ranked first, with 4.63% of flights delayed on the tarmac for at least that long. John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York (3.48%) and Newark Liberty International Airport in neighboring New Jersey (2.71%) followed.
• Among the same 100 airports, those in Portland, Ore., Honolulu and Phoenix had the lowest likelihood of tarmac delays in 2023. At Portland International Airport, 0.14% of 2023 flights spent at least 61 minutes on the tarmac — the lowest among those analyzed. It’s followed by Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu (0.17%) and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (0.19%).
• In 2023, GoJet Airlines (2.22%), Republic Airways (1.68%) and JetBlue (1.49%) had the highest tarmac delay rates. Conversely, Hawaiian Airlines (0.20%), Horizon Air (0.21%) and Southwest Airlines (0.29%) had the lowest tarmac delay rates of 61 minutes or more.

Tarmac delays of at least 61 minutes increase between 2023 and 2024

First, the good news: Just 1.23% of domestic flights were delayed on the tarmac for 61 minutes or more in January and February 2024 (the latest available data).

However, that represents a 19.42% jump from the same period in early 2023, when 1.03% were delayed for 61 or more minutes on the tarmac. And it’s the highest percentage of tarmac delays for January and February since 2019, when it was 1.28%.

Domestic flight tarmac delays in January and February since 2018

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) data.

The majority of the January and February 2024 delays — 10,445 of the 13,932 — happened during the taxi-out phase, meaning the plane left the gate but was stuck waiting for a free runway to take off. Another 1,447 flights experienced a tarmac delay after landing. Other tarmac delays in this period were:

• The plane having to return to the gate before resuming normal operation (1,294)
• A flight diversion to a different airport (402)
• Leaving the gate before the flight is canceled (344)

“I’d suspect that at least part of the problem is the volume of travelers we’re seeing today,” says Matt Schulz, LendingTree chief credit analyst. “Travel demand is booming, and more people on planes means more logistical issues.”

Combine this with some airports having staffing shortages, and you can see why things might get a little messy on the tarmac.

Here’s a closer look when you analyze the full-year data (with 2024 to be determined):

Domestic flight tarmac delays by year since 2018

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. BTS data. Note: The 2024 data is through February.

Besides the discomfort of being stuck on a plane for longer than expected, tarmac delays can have a financial impact and throw an entire trip out of whack, Schulz says.

“That’s a big deal, especially when you’re talking about business travel,” he says. “A long delay on the tarmac can force a businessperson to miss a key meeting, for example, causing them to lose out on a major opportunity for their company.”

Other travelers could miss events they’ve paid for, such as concerts or ball games, or the delay could result in unexpected hotel or food costs. “These costs may get reimbursed in some cases, but it may not happen immediately, causing some financial strain,” Schulz says.

Tarmac delays most common in Colorado and New York-area airports

There’s a good chance that if you were stuck on a tarmac in 2023, it may have involved travel to or from a Colorado or New York-area airport. These areas represented seven of the 10 airports with the highest percentage of flights that spent at least 61 minutes on the tarmac.

Schulz says weather — especially in the winter — could play a role in Colorado, but the Hayden airport’s director defended its reliability in a December 2023 article in the Steamboat Pilot & Today newspaper.

The Colorado airport is followed by John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York (3.48%) and Newark Liberty International Airport in neighboring New Jersey (2.71%).

“In New York, a big part of the problem is the volume of flights going in and out in a relatively small area in which the weather can be unpredictable,” Schulz says. “A few delays at JFK, Newark or LaGuardia Airport can cause chaos that spreads throughout the country.”

Airports with the highest percentage of domestic flights with tarmac delays

Source: LendingTree analysis of 2023 U.S. BTS data.

Conversely, the airports with the lowest percentage of flights delayed for 61 minutes or more on the tarmac were Portland International Airport (just 0.14% of flights), Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu (0.17%) and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (0.19%).

These airports have the benefit of little to no snowfall. Phoenix stands out for its low tarmac delay rate despite having a top-10 number of scheduled flights among the airports analyzed.

Airports with the lowest percentage of domestic flights with tarmac delays

Source: LendingTree analysis of 2023 U.S. BTS data.

Full rankings

Airports with the highest/lowest percentage of domestic flights with tarmac delays

Source: LendingTree analysis of 2023 U.S. BTS data. Note: This analyzes the 100 airports with the most tarmac delays.

GoJet, Republic and JetBlue have highest tarmac delay rates

Though many factors can contribute to airport tarmac delays, it’s worth noting that some airlines have a higher percentage of them than others.

Based on 2023 data, GoJet Airlines had the highest percentage of tarmac delays, impacting 2.22% of its flights. Republic Airways (1.68%) and JetBlue (1.49%) rounded out the top three.

While it’s unclear what attributes might make GoJet the biggest tarmac offender, it also had the highest percentage of tarmac delays in 2022 and the second-highest in 2021. Similarly, Republic had the second-highest percentage in 2022. Meanwhile, JetBlue’s main hub is New York’s JFK airport, which also happens to be the airport with the second-highest percentage of tarmac delays.

“It may not be anything that makes you steer clear of these airlines entirely, since price and timing and other factors are probably more important, but it’s worth noting,” says Schulz, author of “Ask Questions, Save Money, Make More: How to Take Control of Your Financial Life.”

Regardless of airline, Schulz says strategies like booking the first flight of the day and allowing some extra layover time if you’ll be making connections later can better position you to avoid the impact of a tarmac delay.

Airlines with the highest/lowest percentage of domestic flights with tarmac delays

Source: LendingTree analysis of 2023 U.S. BTS data.

5 expert tips to financially protect yourself against flight delays

From missing an event to not catching your connecting flight and having to stay in a hotel until the next morning, flight delays can wreak havoc on your travel itinerary — and, sometimes, your wallet. Though you can’t fully control a flight’s on-time status, there are some things you can do to lower your risk of flight delay-related expenses.

• Lean on credit card travel insurance. “Travel insurance, whether from travel credit cards or purchased separately, can be useful in these cases,” Schulz says. Coverage like trip delay reimbursement can vary widely and sometimes require you to jump through hoops, he adds, but it can also save you a lot of financial headaches.
• Build in some itinerary wiggle room if you can. “The more margin for error you can give yourself and your airline when you travel, the more likely you are to have your trip go smoothly,” Schulz says. Try not to cut it too close if you have a planned event or connecting flight later in the day.
• Leave on the first flight out. Schulz says this is something he always tries to do. That early wake-up call can be tough, but it can beat sitting around an airport because your plane is sitting on the tarmac a few miles away and full of passengers.
• Have contact and reservation info on you if you need to call ahead to change any plans. That way, if plans go awry, you can call whoever you might need to and get the ball rolling on any changes as early as possible, Schulz says.
• Have some of the basics on you, in case you end up delayed. It can be enticing to check everything and move through the airport relatively unencumbered, but carrying a few necessities can make a tarmac delay much more bearable, Schulz says. Try to have medications and an extra clothing layer for the plane, plus a phone charger, basic toiletries and other necessities in case a longer delay forces you to change plans.

Methodology

LendingTree researchers analyzed U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) domestic tarmac times by year, airport and airline. We specifically examined tarmac delays of 61 minutes or more.

Nationally, we looked at January and February 2023 versus January and February 2024 (the latest at the time of research), as well as the full years from 2018 to 2023. Our airport and airline analyses are based on 2023 data. The airport analysis focuses on the 100 airports with the most tarmac delays, while the airline analysis includes those with available data.