Transatlantic · 336 routes · 45 European airports · 21 countries
Europe → United States
341,000 flights a year between 45 European airports and 39 US airports, route by route: who flies them, how often, how late they leave where that is recorded, and what you are owed when one goes wrong.
Three public sources cover the Atlantic, and none of them covers all of it. The US Department of Transportation counts every flight and passenger between a US and a European airport, by carrier and month, but records delays only for domestic flights. The UK Civil Aviation Authority publishes punctuality for every route out of 25 UK airports, the only such record in Europe. EUROCONTROL scores every large European airport daily, as a whole. This section puts the three side by side for every route with at least 100 flights a year.
The 52 UK routes carry the full record: 76.4% of the 46,367 UK departures to the United States left within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026, 2.2% were cancelled, and 0.78% left three hours or more late, the point at which compensation becomes payable. The 284 routes from the rest of Europe cannot be graded, and are not; each page says what can be measured instead.
Key figures
Flights a year
341,000
Both directions, July 2025 to June 2026 (DOT)
UK departures on time
76.4%
Of 46,367 to the US (CAA)
Cancelled
2.16%
UK-to-US departures
3+ hours late
0.78%
UK-to-US departures; the compensation threshold
The full record
UK to US routes, ranked by departure punctuality
Every UK-to-US route with at least 100 matched departures in the CAA's files, most punctual first. The grade follows the site's scale: the letter from the on-time rate, the sign from cancellations. LHR to DTW leads at 90.7%; LHR to CVG is last at 62.3%.
Departure airports
45 European airports with US service
Ranked by EUROCONTROL's year-to-date departure punctuality, every airline and destination included, as of 21 October 2026. Stockholm Arlanda leads at 84.0% of departures within 15 minutes; Lisbon closes the table at 57.5%. Airports EUROCONTROL does not score are listed after them by volume.
| Airport | Country | US routes | Flights | Departures on time | Arrivals on time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stockholm Arlanda (ARN) | Sweden | 2 | 1,210 | 84.0% | 84.0% |
| Oslo Gardermoen (OSL) | Norway | 2 | 1,049 | 82.7% | 82.5% |
| Copenhagen (CPH) | Denmark | 12 | 6,101 | 82.2% | 80.0% |
| London Heathrow (LHR) | United Kingdom | 31 | 81,419 | 80.3% | 80.5% |
| Vienna (VIE) | Austria | 6 | 3,040 | 79.5% | 80.0% |
| Bilbao (BIO) | Spain | 1 | 100 | 78.9% | 84.3% |
| Helsinki-Vantaa (HEL) | Finland | 5 | 2,130 | 77.6% | 77.5% |
| Faro (FAO) | Portugal | 1 | 144 | 77.2% | 79.6% |
| Kraków (KRK) | Poland | 1 | 307 | 76.9% | 78.6% |
| Glasgow (GLA) | United Kingdom | 1 | 183 | 76.0% | 76.7% |
| Dublin (DUB) | Ireland | 23 | 21,045 | 75.7% | 73.7% |
| Prague (PRG) | Czechia | 1 | 384 | 75.6% | 76.5% |
| Porto (OPO) | Portugal | 2 | 1,780 | 74.2% | 75.2% |
| Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS) | Netherlands | 22 | 24,658 | 73.1% | 78.3% |
| Warsaw Chopin (WAW) | Poland | 5 | 3,255 | 72.9% | 78.1% |
| Edinburgh (EDI) | United Kingdom | 8 | 4,556 | 71.4% | 74.0% |
| Berlin Brandenburg (BER) | Germany | 2 | 1,215 | 71.4% | 77.3% |
| Belgrade (BEG) | Serbia | 1 | 447 | 71.4% | 70.5% |
| Brussels (BRU) | Belgium | 5 | 3,731 | 71.1% | 76.9% |
| Munich (MUC) | Germany | 16 | 13,586 | 71.0% | 80.0% |
| Catania (CTA) | Italy | 1 | 384 | 70.9% | 75.7% |
| Frankfurt (FRA) | Germany | 25 | 27,399 | 70.8% | 78.3% |
| Paris Orly (ORY) | France | 4 | 1,800 | 70.4% | 77.5% |
| Geneva (GVA) | Switzerland | 3 | 2,184 | 69.6% | 76.4% |
| London Gatwick (LGW) | United Kingdom | 7 | 3,994 | 69.2% | 71.9% |
| Venice Marco Polo (VCE) | Italy | 6 | 2,499 | 69.2% | 77.6% |
| Palermo (PMO) | Italy | 1 | 178 | 69.2% | 76.8% |
| Keflavík (KEF) | Iceland | 16 | 12,600 | 69.0% | 77.8% |
| Madrid Barajas (MAD) | Spain | 14 | 15,894 | 67.6% | 78.0% |
| Málaga (AGP) | Spain | 1 | 289 | 67.0% | 77.5% |
| Milan Malpensa (MXP) | Italy | 7 | 5,736 | 66.2% | 74.1% |
| Barcelona El Prat (BCN) | Spain | 11 | 9,431 | 66.0% | 76.6% |
| Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) | France | 22 | 35,063 | 65.7% | 78.2% |
| Rome Fiumicino (FCO) | Italy | 16 | 15,637 | 64.0% | 76.0% |
| Athens (ATH) | Greece | 9 | 5,601 | 63.9% | 66.5% |
| Manchester (MAN) | United Kingdom | 5 | 3,084 | 63.6% | 65.7% |
| Palma de Mallorca (PMI) | Spain | 1 | 168 | 62.9% | 74.9% |
| Nice Côte d'Azur (NCE) | France | 5 | 1,654 | 61.6% | 71.5% |
| Zurich (ZRH) | Switzerland | 12 | 12,199 | 60.8% | 73.0% |
| Naples (NAP) | Italy | 5 | 1,965 | 60.2% | 75.6% |
| Lisbon (LIS) | Portugal | 9 | 9,969 | 57.5% | 72.3% |
| Shannon (SNN) | Ireland | 4 | 2,250 | — | — |
| Ponta Delgada (PDL) | Portugal | 3 | 1,258 | — | — |
| Dubrovnik (DBV) | Croatia | 1 | 318 | — | — |
| Madeira (FNC) | Portugal | 1 | 110 | — | — |
Every route
All routes, by departure airport
London Heathrow (LHR)United Kingdom
- JFK New York79.1%
- EWR Newark77.4%
- LAX Los Angeles77.8%
- ORD Chicago77.6%
- BOS Boston79.4%
- SFO San Francisco76.8%
- IAD Washington75.3%
- MIA Miami73.9%
- ATL Atlanta79.7%
- DFW Dallas-Fort Worth74.4%
- IAH Houston72.5%
- SEA Seattle79.3%
- CLT Charlotte77.2%
- PHL Philadelphia73.2%
- DEN Denver79.9%
- LAS Las Vegas73.0%
- MCO Orlando81.4%
- PHX Phoenix63.8%
- AUS Austin67.4%
- SAN San Diego72.7%
- BNA Nashville71.1%
- DTW Detroit90.7%
- MSP Minneapolis76.6%
- TPA Tampa81.0%
- RDU Raleigh77.8%
- BWI Baltimore63.9%
- PIT Pittsburgh66.1%
- PDX Portland72.6%
- SLC Salt Lake City80.0%
- CVG Cincinnati62.3%
- MSY New Orleans73.8%
Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG)France
- JFK New York7,055
- LAX Los Angeles3,524
- ATL Atlanta3,078
- BOS Boston2,530
- IAD Washington2,247
- EWR Newark2,140
- ORD Chicago2,073
- SFO San Francisco1,679
- DTW Detroit1,531
- MIA Miami1,419
- DFW Dallas-Fort Worth1,260
- SEA Seattle1,023
- MSP Minneapolis953
- PHL Philadelphia709
- IAH Houston702
- SLC Salt Lake City691
- RDU Raleigh557
- MCO Orlando465
- CVG Cincinnati458
- PHX Phoenix410
- CLT Charlotte317
- DEN Denver153
Rome Fiumicino (FCO)Italy
Frankfurt (FRA)Germany
- JFK New York3,168
- ORD Chicago2,780
- IAD Washington2,352
- SFO San Francisco2,330
- EWR Newark1,642
- ATL Atlanta1,398
- IAH Houston1,394
- DEN Denver1,329
- DTW Detroit1,267
- DFW Dallas-Fort Worth1,228
- BOS Boston1,167
- LAX Los Angeles1,142
- SEA Seattle856
- MIA Miami823
- CLT Charlotte720
- TPA Tampa644
- MCO Orlando638
- RDU Raleigh444
- PHL Philadelphia415
- LAS Las Vegas413
- AUS Austin403
- STL St. Louis302
- RSW Fort Myers204
- MSP Minneapolis162
- ANC Anchorage106
Madrid Barajas (MAD)Spain
Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS)Netherlands
- JFK New York3,000
- ATL Atlanta2,870
- BOS Boston2,230
- MSP Minneapolis2,032
- DTW Detroit1,966
- IAH Houston1,383
- IAD Washington1,366
- ORD Chicago1,326
- SEA Seattle1,139
- LAX Los Angeles1,110
- SFO San Francisco1,107
- SLC Salt Lake City919
- EWR Newark728
- PHL Philadelphia679
- LAS Las Vegas536
- PDX Portland498
- TPA Tampa405
- AUS Austin312
- MCO Orlando295
- MIA Miami281
- DFW Dallas-Fort Worth268
- SAN San Diego208
Dublin (DUB)Ireland
- JFK New York2,795
- BOS Boston2,476
- IAD Washington2,342
- ORD Chicago2,325
- EWR Newark1,996
- PHL Philadelphia1,316
- MSP Minneapolis1,120
- SFO San Francisco670
- LAX Los Angeles648
- ATL Atlanta576
- MCO Orlando552
- BDL Hartford542
- CLE Cleveland526
- DFW Dallas-Fort Worth513
- SEA Seattle507
- CLT Charlotte422
- BNA Nashville392
- IND Indianapolis386
- DEN Denver282
- DTW Detroit217
- LAS Las Vegas158
- MIA Miami130
- RDU Raleigh114
Milan Malpensa (MXP)Italy
Zurich (ZRH)Switzerland
Lisbon (LIS)Portugal
Keflavík (KEF)Iceland
Munich (MUC)Germany
London Gatwick (LGW)United Kingdom
Athens (ATH)Greece
Manchester (MAN)United Kingdom
Edinburgh (EDI)United Kingdom
Copenhagen (CPH)Denmark
Vienna (VIE)Austria
Helsinki-Vantaa (HEL)Finland
Nice Côte d'Azur (NCE)France
Dubrovnik (DBV)Croatia
Prague (PRG)Czechia
Faro (FAO)Portugal
Madeira (FNC)Portugal
Glasgow (GLA)United Kingdom
The figure beside a UK route is the CAA departure on-time rate; beside any other route it is the DOT’s twelve-month flight count.
Arrival airports
39 US airports with European routes
- New York (JFK)34 routes
- Newark (EWR)38 routes
- Chicago (ORD)23 routes
- Boston (BOS)21 routes
- Washington (IAD)20 routes
- Atlanta (ATL)19 routes
- Los Angeles (LAX)18 routes
- San Francisco (SFO)13 routes
- Miami (MIA)18 routes
- Philadelphia (PHL)17 routes
- Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW)10 routes
- Seattle (SEA)9 routes
- Orlando (MCO)11 routes
- Detroit (DTW)8 routes
- Houston (IAH)5 routes
- Charlotte (CLT)8 routes
- Minneapolis (MSP)8 routes
- Denver (DEN)7 routes
- Las Vegas (LAS)6 routes
- Tampa (TPA)5 routes
- Raleigh (RDU)5 routes
- Salt Lake City (SLC)3 routes
- San Diego (SAN)3 routes
- Austin (AUS)3 routes
- Phoenix (PHX)2 routes
- Portland (PDX)3 routes
- Nashville (BNA)3 routes
- Baltimore (BWI)2 routes
- San Juan (SJU)1 route
- Cincinnati (CVG)2 routes
- Pittsburgh (PIT)2 routes
- Hartford (BDL)1 route
- Cleveland (CLE)1 route
- New Orleans (MSY)1 route
- Indianapolis (IND)1 route
- St. Louis (STL)1 route
- Melbourne (MLB)2 routes
- Fort Myers (RSW)1 route
- Anchorage (ANC)1 route
Each US airport page lists its European routes and carries the live FAA status, the weather and the domestic delay record that an arriving transatlantic flight shares.
Your rights
What EC 261/2004 and UK261 pay, and when
Every flight that departs an airport in the EU, Iceland, Norway or Switzerland is covered by Regulation (EC) 261/2004, and every flight departing the UK by its retained twin, UK261, whichever airline operates it and wherever it lands. A flight back from the United States is covered only when an EU or UK carrier flies it. The test is the arrival: three hours or more late at the final destination, or a cancellation with under 14 days' notice, for a reason within the airline's control. Weather, air traffic control restrictions and strikes outside the airline are the usual exemptions.
Every route in this section is over 3,500 km, which puts all of them in the top band: €600 a passenger from the EU, £520 from the UK, halved when the airline rebooked you to arrive under four hours late. Care, meals and a hotel where needed, and rebooking or a refund are owed regardless of the cause. Claims can be made directly to the airline for free; claim companies take a share of the payout in exchange for handling the correspondence and, where it comes to that, the court filing.
Reading the figures
Three sources, three definitions
CAA punctuality is measured at the UK airport: a departure is on time if it left the gate within 15 minutes of its planned time, an arrival if it reached the gate within 15 minutes. The CAA's average delay is across every matched flight with early flights counted as zero, which is a different and smaller number than the DOT-style "average delay of delayed flights" used on the US pages of this site. EUROCONTROL's punctuality is the same 15-minute test applied to every flight at an airport, published daily as yesterday, the last week and the year to date. The DOT international report counts flights and passengers between an airport pair in both directions together and carries no times at all.
None of the three is adjusted, modelled or combined here. Where a page shows a grade, it is the CAA departure record on the site's usual scale; where no such record exists, the page says so and shows no grade. The data sources page has the publishers, cadences and terms for each.
Sources: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, International Report (flights and passengers by carrier and airport pair), July 2025 to June 2026; UK Civil Aviation Authority punctuality statistics, September 2025 to August 2026; EUROCONTROL Aviation Intelligence Portal, airport punctuality and ATFM delay to 21 October 2026. Rebuilt 22 October 2026; the EUROCONTROL figures refresh with each weekly build, the others when their publisher releases a month. How these sources differ.