Transatlantic route record · UK CAA departure punctuality
EDI→EWR
Edinburgh to Newark
- Flights
- 886 both ways
- Carriers
- 1
- Distance
- 3,259 mi
- Period
- September 2025 to August 2026
Over the twelve months to August 2026, 65.4% of departures from Edinburgh to Newark Liberty International left within 15 minutes of their planned time, from 381 flights the UK Civil Aviation Authority matched to a schedule. That is 11 points behind the 76.4% recorded across every UK departure to the United States, and it ranks 45th of the 50 UK-to-US routes with a usable record. About one flight in three left at least 15 minutes behind schedule, and 9 of 390 scheduled departures, 2.3%, did not operate at all.
The route's 65.4% is essentially unchanged from the same twelve months a year earlier, when 65.9% left on time. Across every departure from the 25 UK airports the CAA reports, to any destination, 72.4% left within 15 minutes in the same period; transatlantic departures run slightly better than the UK average, partly because wide-body long-haul flights are scheduled with more slack than short-haul rotations. A single carrier accounts for almost every departure, so the route figure and the airline figure are the same number.
Key figures
Left on time
65.4%
Within 15 minutes of schedule, of 381 departures (CAA)
Avg delay
25 min
Across all departures, early counted as zero
Cancelled
2.31%
All UK-to-US departures: 2.16%
3+ hours late
2.03%
The UK261 compensation threshold
13.1% of departures left more than an hour late, and 2.03% left three hours or more behind schedule, about one flight in 50. Three hours at arrival is the threshold at which UK261 compensation becomes payable, £520 a passenger on a sector of this length; the CAA measures the departure, so a flight in that band left the gate three hours late, which is not quite the same test but rarely ends differently after seven hours over the Atlantic. The average delay across every matched departure, early ones counted as zero, was 24.9 minutes, against 14.2 for all UK-to-US departures.
Carrier by carrier
Which airline leaves EDI for EWR on time
United Airlines is the only carrier the DOT report shows on EDI to EWR, with 886 flights and an average of 149 passengers aboard each. A single-carrier route gives a delayed passenger no same-day alternative on the same ticket, which is worth knowing before booking a tight onward connection.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Avg delay | Cancelled | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 390 | 65.4% | 25 min | 2.31% | C |
Flights are scheduled departures in the CAA file, operated plus cancelled; on time is within 15 minutes of the planned off-block time. The DOT count below includes the return direction and may differ.
How late is late
How delays on EDI to EWR are distributed
- Early15+ min early4.9%
- On timeup to 15 min late60.5%
- 16–30 min10.0%
- 31–60 min9.2%
- 1–2 hours6.4%
- 2–3 hours4.6%
- 3–6 hourscompensation threshold1.8%
- Over 6 hours0.3%
Scale runs 0% to 100%.
Across the year
When EDI to EWR runs late
January was the weakest month for departures at 48.4% on time and March the strongest at 83.9%, a swing of 36 points across the year. That is a wide seasonal range, wider than the gap between the best and worst carriers, so the month you fly matters more than the airline you pick. The DOT's count puts the busiest month at 123 flights in July 2025 and the thinnest at 54 in February 2026, so capacity follows the summer peak.
Flights per month, both directions
- July 2025123
- August 2025119
- September 2025104
- October 202561
- November 202560
- December 202561
- January 202660
- February 202654
- March 202662
- April 202660
- May 202662
- June 202660
The DOT's international report counts flights in both directions together: 886 between EDI and EWR from July 2025 to June 2026, about one departure a day in each direction, carrying 131,698 passengers. That makes it the 2nd busiest of 8 US routes from Edinburgh and the 16th busiest of 38 European routes into EWR.
The return leg
EWR to EDI: arrivals back into Edinburgh
Coming the other way, 70.8% of arrivals from Newark Liberty International into Edinburgh reached the gate within 15 minutes of schedule, across 384 flights. 28% arrived more than 15 minutes early, which is normal for an eastbound crossing with the jet stream behind it and a schedule padded for the days it is not. 0.77% of those arrivals were three hours or more late, the figure that decides a compensation claim on the return trip, and 1.5% were cancelled.
Arrived on time
70.8%
Within 15 minutes, of 384 arrivals
Early
27.5%
More than 15 minutes ahead of schedule
Cancelled
1.54%
3+ hours late
0.77%
Arrival delay, the compensation test
- Early15+ min early27.5%
- On timeup to 15 min late43.3%
- 16–30 min7.5%
- 31–60 min7.2%
- 1–2 hours9.0%
- 2–3 hours3.3%
- 3–6 hourscompensation threshold0.8%
- Over 6 hours0.0%
Scale runs 0% to 100%.
The departure airport
How Edinburgh is running
EUROCONTROL's figures for Edinburgh as a whole, every airline and every destination: 71.4% of departures and 74.0% of arrivals within 15 minutes of schedule from 1 January to 21 October 2026, with 97.0% of scheduled flights operated. The last seven days ran at 73.0% for departures, 2 points better than the year so far. Air traffic flow management delay attributed to the airport averaged 0.0 minutes per arriving flight this year, 0.0 over the last week.
| Window | Departures on time | Arrivals on time | Schedules operated | ATFM delay / arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yesterday (21 October 2026) | 81.7% | 82.1% | 96.5% | 0.0 min |
| Last 7 days | 73.0% | 77.0% | 96.8% | 0.0 min |
| Year to date | 71.4% | 74.0% | 97.0% | 0.0 min |
Every US route from Edinburgh, and its full punctuality record
The arrival airport
Landing at Newark Liberty International
Newark Liberty International is scored on this site from the DOT's domestic data: 77.4% of its 122,267 domestic departures arrived on time over the last twelve months, with delayed flights running a little over an hour late, and 3.44% were cancelled. Those are domestic flights, not this route, but an arriving transatlantic flight shares the same runways, the same weather and the same ground delay programmes, so a bad day at EWR reaches a flight from EDI just as surely. The airport's own page has the hour-by-hour and month-by-month detail, and its live FAA status appears above when the FAA has something to say.
Domestic on time
77.4%
Arrivals under 15 minutes late (DOT)
Avg delay
79 min
Delayed domestic flights only
Cancelled
3.44%
Domestic departures
122,267
Last twelve months
Newark Liberty International (EWR) delay statistics, hour by hour and month by month
Your rights
UK261 on EDI to EWR
Every flight that departs Edinburgh falls under UK261, the retained version of the EU regulation, whichever airline flies it and wherever it lands. If it arrives at Newark Liberty International three hours or more late, or is cancelled with under 14 days' notice, and the cause was within the airline's control, each passenger is owed £520 (£260 if the airline got you there under four hours late), on top of rebooking and care. Weather, air traffic control restrictions and strikes outside the airline are the usual exemptions. The return flight from EWR is covered only when the carrier is UK or EU based. The sector is about 3,259 miles, 5,244 km, which puts it in the top distance band.
Delayed three hours or more? Check a claim with Compensair →
What to do with this
Booking EDI to EWR
Booked blind, EDI to EWR is a C route by the departure record, and there is no carrier choice to make. Leave at least two hours for any onward connection at EWR: 13% of departures were an hour or more late, and immigration comes before the connecting flight.
Common questions
EDI to EWR questions
How often are EDI to EWR flights delayed?
About one flight in three leaves Edinburgh at least 15 minutes behind schedule, 34.6% of the 381 departures the CAA matched between September 2025 and August 2026. 13.1% left more than an hour late and 2.03% three hours or more. A further 2.3% of scheduled departures were cancelled.
Which airlines fly EDI to EWR?
United Airlines. United Airlines accounted for 100% of the 886 flights the DOT counted on the pair.
Can I claim compensation for a delayed EDI to EWR flight?
Yes, if the flight arrived three hours or more late or was cancelled at short notice for a reason within the airline's control: departures from Edinburgh are covered by UK261 whichever airline operates them. The fixed amount for a sector of this length is £520 a passenger, £260 if the airline got you there under four hours late. On this route 2.03% of departures left three hours or more late over the last twelve months. The return from EWR is covered only on a UK or EU carrier.
What is the worst month for delays on EDI to EWR?
January, at 48.4% of departures on time, against 83.9% in March, the best month. A gap that size is worth moving flexible dates for.
Related
Where to go next
- Edinburgh (EDI): every US route
- Newark Liberty International (EWR) delay statistics
- EDI to JFK, New York (JFK)1,104 flights
- EDI to BOS, Boston (BOS)723 flights
- EDI to IAD, Washington (IAD)541 flights
- EDI to ATL, Atlanta (ATL)445 flights
- LHR to EWR, from London6,322 flights
- CDG to EWR, from Paris2,140 flights
- LIS to EWR, from Lisbon2,069 flights
- DUB to EWR, from Dublin1,996 flights
- Every Europe-to-US route and airport
The departure record is the CAA's, measured at Edinburgh; the arrival record for the return leg is also measured at Edinburgh. Nothing here is measured at EWR, where the DOT keeps no record of international flights.
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.