Holiday record
Fourth of July week 2024 flight delays
Monday 1 July 2024 to Sunday 7 July 2024 · 136,807 flights
Historical statistics for Fourth of July week 2024, not live status and not a forecast for a future Fourth of July week.
Fourth of July week 2024 flew better than the weeks around it, not worse: 79.5% of flights arrived on time, 9.4 points above the 70.1% of the surrounding weeks. Beyond that, late flights averaged 72 minutes against 81 and cancellations came to 0.84% against 2.91%.
Key figures
On time
79.5%
Normal weeks: 70.1%
Avg delay
72 min
Delayed flights only. Normal weeks: 81 min
Cancelled
0.84%
Normal weeks: 2.91%
1 hour+ late
7.3%
Normal weeks: 12.4%
7 days and 136,807 flights: that is the window from Monday 1 July 2024 to Sunday 7 July 2024. At 19,544 flights a day it ran 5% below the 20,625 of the weeks around it.
Against normal weeks
Fourth of July week 2024 next to the weeks around it
| Period | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All flights, Fourth of July week 2024 | 136,807 | 79.5% | 70.1% | +9.4 | 0.84% | 2.91% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Day by day
Which day of Fourth of July week ran best
The return leg was the weak point: the final day, Sunday 7 July at 69.6% on time, 4.0 points below the 65.6% of ordinary Sundays. The best day was Thursday 4 July at 89.8%, while Sunday 7 July was the busiest, with 21,155 flights scheduled. 0 of the 7 days ran below the figure for the same weekday in the baseline weeks.
Against the same weekday in normal weeks, day by day: Mon 1 +6.3, Tue 2 +11.0, Wed 3 +11.8, Thu 4 +17.8, Fri 5 +13.5, Sat 6 +2.7, Sun 7 +4.0 points. Not one day ran below its weekday baseline.
| Day | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday 1 July | 20,360 | 77.8% | 71.5% | +6.3 | 1.66% | 2.15% |
| Tuesday 2 July | 19,721 | 83.8% | 72.8% | +11.0 | 0.26% | 1.14% |
| Wednesday 3 July | 20,515 | 83.8% | 72.0% | +11.8 | 0.17% | 2.07% |
| Thursday 4 July | 16,943 | 89.8% | 72.0% | +17.8 | 0.11% | 1.86% |
| Friday 5 July | 19,007 | 78.7% | 65.2% | +13.5 | 0.56% | 4.74% |
| Saturday 6 July | 19,106 | 74.2% | 71.5% | +2.7 | 0.64% | 3.37% |
| Sunday 7 July | 21,155 | 69.6% | 65.6% | +4.0 | 2.23% | 4.99% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Here “normal weeks” means the same day of the week in the baseline weeks, so a Sunday is set against the baseline Sundays.
Departure window
The best time of day to fly it
Delays built through the day and peaked late: 68.5% on time for 8pm–5am departures against 91.1% for 5am–8am. The 5pm–8pm window moved most against its normal weeks, 13.1 points better than 56.3%.
| Departure | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5am–8am | 22,896 | 91.1% | 86.6% | +4.5 | 0.88% | 2.43% |
| 8am–11am | 25,527 | 86.7% | 80.7% | +6.0 | 0.56% | 2.18% |
| 11am–2pm | 24,112 | 82.7% | 74.0% | +8.7 | 0.43% | 2.20% |
| 2pm–5pm | 23,576 | 75.0% | 63.5% | +11.5 | 0.64% | 2.73% |
| 5pm–8pm | 23,072 | 69.4% | 56.3% | +13.1 | 1.14% | 3.71% |
| 8pm–5am | 17,624 | 68.5% | 56.5% | +12.0 | 1.59% | 4.50% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Airport by airport
Airports over Fourth of July week 2024
Most large airports coped better than usual, and only 0 of 56 ran below their normal weeks. The weakest were Charlotte (CLT) at 66.7%, Houston (IAH) at 67.2% and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) at 71.0%; the strongest Kahului (OGG) at 91.1%, Salt Lake City (SLC) at 87.3% and Honolulu (HNL) at 87.2%.
The biggest airports carried the most weight: Denver (DEN, 6,227 departures, 80.1% on time), Atlanta (ATL, 6,185 departures, 77.3% on time) and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW, 6,081 departures, 71.0% on time), together 14% of every departure in the window.
Best against their own normal weeks: Orlando (MCO, +19.4 points), Miami (MIA, +17.0 points) and Detroit (DTW, +15.4 points).
How long a delay lasted depended heavily on the airport. Delayed departures from Austin (AUS) averaged 111 minutes, against 74 in its normal weeks, the longest of any large airport; at Anchorage (ANC) the average was 42 minutes.
Some airports took far more of the holiday rush than others. Daily departures rose most at Kahului (OGG, +1%), San Francisco (SFO, +1%) and Honolulu (HNL, +1%), and fell most at Atlanta (ATL, −11%). The extra traffic did not cost them punctuality.
| Airport | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver (DEN) | 6,227 | 80.1% | 67.1% | +13.0 | 0.42% | 1.84% |
| Atlanta (ATL) | 6,185 | 77.3% | 69.9% | +7.4 | 0.49% | 5.13% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) | 6,081 | 71.0% | 64.1% | +6.9 | 0.49% | 1.67% |
| Chicago (ORD) | 5,323 | 74.2% | 64.6% | +9.6 | 0.81% | 3.07% |
| Charlotte (CLT) | 4,031 | 66.7% | 61.1% | +5.6 | 1.46% | 3.22% |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 3,777 | 80.7% | 73.6% | +7.1 | 0.48% | 2.31% |
| Seattle (SEA) | 3,524 | 81.6% | 71.9% | +9.7 | 0.28% | 1.64% |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 3,471 | 76.6% | 66.0% | +10.6 | 0.78% | 2.46% |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 3,401 | 81.2% | 72.2% | +9.0 | 0.62% | 1.38% |
| New York (LGA) | 3,197 | 82.1% | 69.8% | +12.3 | 2.03% | 6.91% |
| Orlando (MCO) | 2,955 | 81.4% | 62.0% | +19.4 | 0.58% | 2.64% |
| Boston (BOS) | 2,740 | 83.0% | 70.0% | +13.0 | 0.73% | 3.33% |
| Washington (DCA) | 2,651 | 81.8% | 72.0% | +9.8 | 0.64% | 3.04% |
| San Francisco (SFO) | 2,576 | 85.1% | 76.5% | +8.6 | 0.93% | 2.37% |
| Newark (EWR) | 2,474 | 71.4% | 63.8% | +7.6 | 1.46% | 6.30% |
| Minneapolis (MSP) | 2,441 | 79.0% | 65.1% | +13.9 | 0.25% | 3.31% |
| New York (JFK) | 2,440 | 75.2% | 66.6% | +8.6 | 0.86% | 5.70% |
| Detroit (DTW) | 2,427 | 85.3% | 69.9% | +15.4 | 0.66% | 3.55% |
| Houston (IAH) | 2,255 | 67.2% | 63.4% | +3.8 | 2.62% | 7.27% |
| Philadelphia (PHL) | 2,124 | 74.9% | 66.8% | +8.1 | 2.21% | 4.89% |
| Salt Lake City (SLC) | 2,107 | 87.3% | 74.9% | +12.4 | 0.43% | 2.92% |
| Nashville (BNA) | 1,968 | 82.6% | 71.6% | +11.0 | 0.46% | 1.97% |
| Baltimore (BWI) | 1,950 | 73.7% | 60.5% | +13.2 | 0.41% | 1.70% |
| Miami (MIA) | 1,947 | 78.8% | 61.8% | +17.0 | 0.41% | 2.09% |
| San Diego (SAN) | 1,882 | 79.0% | 69.6% | +9.4 | 0.53% | 1.74% |
| Chicago (MDW) | 1,695 | 77.9% | 63.1% | +14.8 | 0.35% | 1.34% |
| Austin (AUS) | 1,640 | 78.7% | 69.3% | +9.4 | 0.67% | 1.77% |
| Fort Lauderdale (FLL) | 1,636 | 77.4% | 65.4% | +12.0 | 0.73% | 2.82% |
| Tampa (TPA) | 1,384 | 78.7% | 66.2% | +12.5 | 0.51% | 2.40% |
| Dallas (DAL) | 1,372 | 80.2% | 69.5% | +10.7 | 0.29% | 0.69% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Route by route
The busiest routes over Fourth of July week 2024
Holiday windows are too short for most routes to build a sample: the busiest, HNL to OGG (227 flights, 91.9% on time against 85.7% normally), did not reach 500. The ten busiest are listed below as small samples, and 9 of them ran better than their normal weeks.
| Route | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HNL to OGGsmall sample | 227 | 91.9% | 85.7% | +6.2 | 2.64% | 0.78% |
| OGG to HNLsmall sample | 227 | 93.2% | 86.9% | +6.3 | 3.52% | 0.78% |
| ORD to LGAsmall sample | 217 | 75.4% | 61.1% | +14.3 | 0.92% | 7.55% |
| LGA to ORDsmall sample | 216 | 78.6% | 66.7% | +11.9 | 1.85% | 7.33% |
| LAX to SFOsmall sample | 203 | 85.2% | 76.8% | +8.4 | 0.00% | 2.54% |
| SFO to LAXsmall sample | 203 | 79.3% | 78.6% | +0.7 | 0.00% | 3.26% |
| SEA to ANCsmall sample | 196 | 69.9% | 70.6% | −0.7 | 0.00% | 1.53% |
| LAX to JFKsmall sample | 196 | 81.4% | 70.4% | +11.0 | 0.51% | 1.26% |
| ANC to SEAsmall sample | 196 | 91.2% | 77.8% | +13.4 | 1.53% | 1.78% |
| JFK to LAXsmall sample | 195 | 71.6% | 68.5% | +3.1 | 0.00% | 1.01% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Carrier by carrier
Airlines over Fourth of July week 2024
18.9 points separated the best carrier from the worst: Hawaiian Airlines at 91.5%, American Airlines at 72.6%. Every carrier matched or beat its own normal weeks. Spirit Airlines gained the most on its normal weeks, 14.6 points.
Tight connections depend less on the on-time rate than on how many flights ran badly late. 7.3% of arrivals over Fourth of July week 2024 were an hour or more late, against 12.4% normally, down 5.1 points. Houston (IAH) had the highest share among large airports at 17.4%.
Cancellations were local rather than general. Overall 0.84% of flights were called off against 2.91% normally, but Houston (HOU) reached 3.77% and Houston (IAH) 2.62%.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 27,478 | 80.4% | 69.7% | +10.7 | 0.57% | 0.60% |
| Delta Air Lines | 19,080 | 83.6% | 72.1% | +11.5 | 0.06% | 5.17% |
| American Airlines | 18,948 | 72.6% | 64.0% | +8.6 | 0.92% | 2.47% |
| United Airlines | 14,426 | 79.5% | 70.1% | +9.4 | 1.10% | 4.14% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 13,746 | 83.3% | 75.7% | +7.6 | 0.86% | 1.19% |
| Republic Airways | 5,588 | 86.4% | 76.6% | +9.8 | 1.45% | 4.52% |
| Envoy Air | 5,543 | 75.7% | 70.5% | +5.2 | 0.96% | 1.27% |
| Spirit Airlines | 5,391 | 78.4% | 63.8% | +14.6 | 0.93% | 5.62% |
| Alaska Airlines | 5,362 | 79.0% | 72.7% | +6.3 | 0.45% | 1.10% |
| JetBlue Airways | 4,523 | 74.6% | 67.0% | +7.6 | 0.71% | 2.35% |
| Frontier Airlines | 4,336 | 73.6% | 63.0% | +10.6 | 1.34% | 4.88% |
| PSA Airlines | 4,193 | 79.2% | 72.1% | +7.1 | 1.74% | 2.96% |
| Endeavor Air | 3,615 | 80.8% | 71.5% | +9.3 | 2.88% | 9.25% |
| Allegiant Air | 3,032 | 76.0% | 68.6% | +7.4 | 0.99% | 3.72% |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 1,546 | 91.5% | 83.1% | +8.4 | 1.29% | 0.62% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Year on year
Fourth of July week across the years
On-time rate by year: 73.9% in 2023, 79.5% in 2024 and 72.7% in 2025. 2024 tops that list. 2 of those 3 years showed a measurable holiday effect.
| Year | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 128,829 | 73.9% | 70.3% | +3.6 | 1.62% | 3.22% |
| 2024 (this page) | 136,807 | 79.5% | 70.1% | +9.4 | 0.84% | 2.91% |
| 2025, close to normal | 137,453 | 72.7% | 70.1% | +2.6 | 1.65% | 2.62% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
What to do with this
Planning around Fourth of July week
Lessons from 2024: avoid the final day of the window, the worst of 2024; and book before the evening, since 8pm–5am departures ran 22.6 points worse than 5am–8am ones. Those are one year's patterns; check them against the other years before relying on them.
On time means arriving less than 15 minutes after the scheduled gate time. Average delay counts delayed flights only; cancellations are a share of every scheduled flight. A holiday is compared with the two weeks either side of it, leaving out days that belong to other holidays. The measurable-effect test asks for 3 points of on-time rate, 5 minutes of average delay or 2 points of cancellations; airports, routes and carriers need 500 flights in the window to be ranked. The US DOT publishes on-time data about two months after the month it covers.
Related
Where to go next
- Fourth of July week: every year and the next one
- Fourth of July week 2023
- Fourth of July week 2025
- Press kit: chart, data file and summary for Fourth of July week 2024
- Every US travel holiday
- The holidays that fly better than a normal week
- The busiest US travel days, and what they cost in punctuality
- Denver International (DEN) all year
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) all year
- Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW) all year
Holiday comparisons use US DOT on-time data from December 2022 to June 2026. Methodology.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, on-time performance data, July 2025 to June 2026. Last updated 15 September 2026; recomputed monthly. How this data is collected.