Carrier performance at one airport
NK→EWR
Spirit Airlines at Newark Liberty International
- Departures
- 8,204
- Period
- June 2025 to May 2026
- Routes
- 25
- Rank here
- #9 of 10
Spirit Airlines at Newark carries a cancellation problem, not just a delay problem: 6.3% of scheduled flights never operate, against 1.8% nationally. Of the ones that do fly, about seven flights in ten arrive on time, worth a C− overall. The punctuality figure counts only flights that actually departed, so it flatters an operation that cancels this often. That rests on 8,204 flights, of which Republic Airways flew 22,956 at 82.9% on time.
Measured against the airport rather than the country, Spirit Airlines runs 7 points behind the 77.3% weighted average across all carriers at EWR. That is the comparison worth making: every operator here works the same runways, the same airspace and the same weather.
Key figures
On time
70.0%
7,668 completed departures
Avg delay
83 min
Across delayed flights only
Cancelled
6.34%
At EWR, this carrier only
Rank here
#9
Of 10 carriers clearing the floor at EWR
These figures cover 8,204 flights between June 2025 and May 2026. Beyond the headline rate, 14.2% of arrivals land a full hour or more behind schedule. That is the number that wrecks a connection, and it is not visible in an on-time percentage alone.
Against the competition
Every carrier at EWR, ranked
The choice of carrier is not cosmetic here. Republic Airways arrives on time 82.9% of the time; Frontier Airlines manages 68.5%. Sample sizes sit next to every figure, because a two-point gap across 1,151 flights means less than a ten-point one.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Avg delay | Cancelled | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republic Airways | 22,956 | 82.9% | 71 min | 4.86% | B− |
| Allegiant Air | 610 | 79.6% | 81 min | 1.31% | B |
| American Airlines | 6,336 | 79.5% | 96 min | 3.66% | B− |
| Delta Air Lines | 6,661 | 78.0% | 97 min | 3.50% | B− |
| United Airlines | 67,201 | 76.6% | 76 min | 2.04% | B |
| JetBlue Airways | 5,189 | 73.6% | 83 min | 3.10% | C− |
| Envoy Air | 722 | 73.4% | 88 min | 5.12% | C− |
| Alaska Airlines | 3,109 | 72.5% | 69 min | 2.38% | C |
| Spirit Airlines (this page) | 8,204 | 70.0% | 83 min | 6.34% | C− |
| Frontier Airlines | 1,151 | 68.5% | 98 min | 3.04% | C− |
Spirit Airlines cancels 6.3% of what it schedules here, the highest in the table. A cancelled flight never appears in an on-time rate, so read that column alongside the punctuality one rather than after it.
Route by route
Where Spirit Airlines flies from EWR
Spirit Airlines operates 25 routes out of EWR with enough volume to report. Route records inside one carrier at one airport still spread widely, because a short shuttle and a transcontinental have very different exposure to a late inbound.
| Route | Flights | On time | Avg delay | Cancelled | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EWR to MCO · Orlando | 1,181 | 71.4% | 87 min | 5.84% | C− |
| EWR to FLL · Fort Lauderdale | 1,135 | 70.9% | 83 min | 6.70% | C− |
| EWR to DTW · Detroit | 594 | 68.7% | 79 min | 7.91% | C− |
| EWR to ATL · Atlanta | 454 | 70.2% | 81 min | 7.49% | C− |
| EWR to CLT · Charlotte | 445 | 73.4% | 79 min | 6.07% | C− |
| EWR to MYR · Myrtle Beach | 418 | 70.3% | 87 min | 6.70% | C− |
| EWR to AUS · Austin | 376 | 72.0% | 81 min | 5.59% | C− |
| EWR to LAX · Los Angelesthin sample | 347 | 68.8% | 86 min | 6.05% | C− |
| EWR to IND · Indianapolisthin sample | 344 | 69.4% | 76 min | 4.94% | C− |
| EWR to MIA · Miamithin sample | 334 | 59.6% | 79 min | 5.39% | D− |
| EWR to DFW · Dallas-Fort Worththin sample | 315 | 70.9% | 81 min | 4.13% | C− |
| EWR to CHS · Charlestonthin sample | 302 | 72.5% | 71 min | 5.96% | C− |
| EWR to IAH · Houstonthin sample | 289 | 69.1% | 89 min | 7.27% | C− |
| EWR to LAS · Las Vegasthin sample | 244 | 75.3% | 104 min | 2.05% | B |
| EWR to RDU · Raleighthin sample | 241 | 61.9% | 72 min | 9.96% | D− |
| EWR to SAV · Savannahthin sample | 211 | 72.0% | 87 min | 4.74% | C− |
| EWR to ORD · Chicagothin sample | 186 | 61.9% | 102 min | 13.98% | D− |
| EWR to SJU · San Juanthin sample | 146 | 67.9% | 72 min | 6.16% | C− |
| EWR to PBI · West Palm Beachthin sample | 120 | 51.5% | 72 min | 14.17% | F− |
| EWR to BNA · Nashvillethin sample | 107 | 70.9% | 85 min | 3.74% | C− |
| EWR to PIT · Pittsburghthin sample | 100 | 70.8% | 120 min | 4.00% | C− |
| EWR to BHM · Birminghamthin sample | 83 | 78.5% | 65 min | 4.82% | B− |
| EWR to CAE · Columbiathin sample | 58 | 80.7% | 85 min | 0.00% | B+ |
| EWR to CHA · Chattanoogathin sample | 57 | 89.3% | 34 min | 1.75% | A |
| EWR to MSY · New Orleansthin sample | 48 | 63.8% | 104 min | 2.08% | D |
Departure window
Best time of day for this operation
Departure time matters more here than the choice of carrier. The gap between the best and worst window is 29 points, against 14 points between the best and worst carrier. Each bar is the on-time rate for flights scheduled inside that window.
- 5am–8am1,621 flights85.4%
- 8am–11am1,304 flights75.6%
- 11am–2pm1,394 flights74.1%
- 2pm–5pm1,462 flights64.1%
- 5pm–8pm1,267 flights57.5%
- 8pm–5am1,156 flights56.9%
Scale runs 50% to 90%. Rows with fewer than 30 flights show a dash.
The 8pm–5am window is where this operation falls apart: 56.9% on time, against 85.4% for the 5am–8am slot. By evening the aircraft flying these rotations have absorbed a full day of small delays and there is no slack left to recover in.
Across the year
Seasonal pattern
September is the best month on the calendar at 82.0% on time. Shoulder season thins the schedule and takes the summer weather with it, and the operation gets its margin back.
Delay causes
What holds this operation up
- 47%National Airspace System
- 26%Carrier
- 25%Late-arriving aircraft
- 2%Extreme weather
- 1%Security
47% of delay minutes are charged to the National Airspace System: air traffic volume, runway configuration, ground stops. No carrier can price its way out of that, which is why airport choice moves the number here more than carrier choice does. That is 90,000 minutes out of 191,000, against a national NAS share of 21%.
Cancellations run at 6.34%, against 1.80% nationally. That is about one flight in fifteen cancelled outright. A cancelled flight is invisible in every on-time figure on this page, so the punctuality numbers above describe only the flights that actually operated.
For anyone connecting, the number to weigh is not the on-time rate but the tail behind it. 14.2% of arrivals land a full hour or more behind schedule, against 8.2% nationally. A 45-minute layover does not survive that, and no amount of walking quickly changes it. Ninety minutes is the honest minimum here, and two hours if the onward flight is on a separate ticket.
The sample behind these figures is 8,204 flights, enough that the headline rate is stable to within roughly a point. The hour-block and month splits divide that further, so read the thinner bars with more caution than the headline.
Put together: the delay figures matter less here than the 6.34% cancellation rate. A late arrival costs you an hour and a half; a cancelled flight costs you the day. Book the 5am–8am departure so there is still a schedule behind you if it goes wrong, and treat a same-day connection as optimistic.
Common questions
Spirit Airlines at EWR
How often is Spirit Airlines at EWR delayed?
Roughly one flight in three arrive at least 15 minutes late, which is the Department of Transportation's definition of a delayed arrival. That works out to 30.0% of the 8,204 flights in this analysis, against 22.6% nationally. Delayed flights are late by an hour and a half on average.
Which airline is most reliable on Spirit Airlines at EWR?
Republic Airways leads at 82.9% on time across 22,956 flights. Frontier Airlines is at the other end on 68.5%, a gap of 14 points. Sample size matters as much as the percentage: a rate built from a few hundred flights moves around far more than one built from ten thousand.
What time of day has the fewest delays on Spirit Airlines at EWR?
The 5am–8am departure window is the strongest at 85.4% on time. The 8pm–5am window is the weakest at 56.9%, 29 points behind. Later departures inherit delays from earlier flights the same aircraft has already flown, which is why the curve slopes the way it does.
How bad are March delays on Spirit Airlines at EWR?
March is the weakest month at 56.7% on time, compared with 82.0% in September. Across the year that is 25 points between the best and worst months. Moving flexible dates out of that month is one of the few things that reliably helps.
Related
Where to go next
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, on-time performance data, June 2025 to May 2026. Updated monthly. How this data is collected.