Holiday record
Memorial Day weekend 2024 flight delays
Friday 24 May 2024 to Monday 27 May 2024 · 77,237 flights
Historical statistics for Memorial Day weekend 2024, not live status and not a forecast for a future Memorial Day weekend.
By the numbers, Memorial Day weekend 2024 was an ordinary stretch of flying. The on-time rate slipped to 72.0% from 74.2% in the surrounding weeks, late flights averaged 78 minutes against 75, and cancellations were 1.40% against 1.45%, all inside the range a normal fortnight produces.
Key figures
On time
72.0%
Normal weeks: 74.2%
Avg delay
78 min
Delayed flights only. Normal weeks: 75 min
Cancelled
1.40%
Normal weeks: 1.45%
1 hour+ late
11.4%
Normal weeks: 9.8%
4 days and 77,237 flights: that is the window from Friday 24 May 2024 to Monday 27 May 2024. At 19,309 flights a day it ran 3% below the 19,933 of the weeks around it.
Against normal weeks
Memorial Day weekend 2024 next to the weeks around it
| Period | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All flights, Memorial Day weekend 2024 | 77,237 | 72.0% | 74.2% | −2.2 | 1.40% | 1.45% |
“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 Memorial Day weekend ran best
Trouble came early. Friday 24 May at 68.2% on time, the first day, was the weakest, 3.9 points below the 72.1% of ordinary Fridays. The best day was Saturday 25 May at 77.7%, while Friday 24 May was the busiest, with 20,852 flights scheduled. 3 of the 4 days ran below the figure for the same weekday in the baseline weeks.
Day-by-day change against normal weekdays: Fri 24 −3.9, Sat 25 0.0, Sun 26 −0.4, Mon 27 −8.7 points. No more than two days in a row ran below the weekday baseline, so the weak days were isolated rather than a sustained slowdown.
| Day | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday 24 May | 20,852 | 68.2% | 72.1% | −3.9 | 1.91% | 1.12% |
| Saturday 25 May | 17,342 | 77.7% | 77.7% | 0.0 | 0.61% | 0.81% |
| Sunday 26 May | 18,397 | 75.2% | 75.6% | −0.4 | 0.51% | 1.07% |
| Monday 27 May | 20,646 | 68.2% | 76.9% | −8.7 | 2.34% | 0.70% |
“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
Departure time mattered more than the date. Flights leaving 5am–8am ran 87.8% on time, and by 5pm–8pm that had fallen to 58.5%, 29.3 points lower. The 8pm–5am window moved most against its normal weeks, 5.5 points worse than 64.2%.
| Departure | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5am–8am | 12,214 | 87.8% | 88.8% | −1.0 | 0.96% | 1.23% |
| 8am–11am | 14,472 | 81.9% | 82.8% | −0.9 | 0.39% | 0.98% |
| 11am–2pm | 13,664 | 74.8% | 76.3% | −1.5 | 0.59% | 1.09% |
| 2pm–5pm | 13,615 | 67.2% | 68.0% | −0.8 | 1.56% | 1.61% |
| 5pm–8pm | 13,532 | 58.5% | 62.8% | −4.3 | 2.52% | 1.89% |
| 8pm–5am | 9,740 | 58.7% | 64.2% | −5.5 | 2.81% | 2.04% |
“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 Memorial Day weekend 2024
Ranked by on-time rate, Honolulu (HNL) at 89.5%, San Jose (SJC) at 87.5% and Salt Lake City (SLC) at 86.2% led the large airports and Chicago (ORD) at 51.5%, Atlanta (ATL) at 55.3% and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) at 57.2% trailed. Atlanta (ATL) fell furthest against its own normal weeks, from 77.4% to 55.3%. Against their own normal weeks, 18 of 41 slipped.
Three hubs set the tone for the whole network: Atlanta (ATL, 3,672 departures, 55.3% on time), Denver (DEN, 3,546 departures, 80.4% on time) and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW, 3,439 departures, 57.2% on time). Between them they handled 14% of departures.
Not every airport struggled: Houston (HOU, +14.9 points), Honolulu (HNL, +10.1 points) and Denver (DEN, +8.5 points) improved on their usual on-time rate.
Delay length varied widely by airport. Delayed departures from Chicago (ORD) averaged 105 minutes, against 80 in its normal weeks, the longest of any large airport; at Honolulu (HNL) the average was 47 minutes.
The extra holiday flying was concentrated in a handful of places. Daily departures rose most at Miami (MIA, +1%), Denver (DEN, +1%) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL, +1%), and fell most at Chicago (MDW, −10%). The extra traffic did not cost them punctuality.
| Airport | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta (ATL) | 3,672 | 55.3% | 77.4% | −22.1 | 0.41% | 0.37% |
| Denver (DEN) | 3,546 | 80.4% | 71.9% | +8.5 | 0.48% | 0.76% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) | 3,439 | 57.2% | 54.2% | +3.0 | 3.87% | 7.62% |
| Chicago (ORD) | 3,064 | 51.5% | 70.9% | −19.4 | 3.69% | 1.08% |
| Charlotte (CLT) | 2,436 | 63.3% | 61.7% | +1.6 | 0.45% | 1.91% |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 2,137 | 79.1% | 76.3% | +2.8 | 0.51% | 0.72% |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 2,060 | 79.9% | 75.5% | +4.4 | 0.39% | 0.86% |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 2,058 | 80.5% | 73.7% | +6.8 | 0.53% | 0.78% |
| Seattle (SEA) | 1,858 | 83.6% | 76.1% | +7.5 | 0.11% | 0.58% |
| Orlando (MCO) | 1,747 | 72.2% | 70.9% | +1.3 | 0.69% | 1.09% |
| New York (LGA) | 1,684 | 67.1% | 80.6% | −13.5 | 5.46% | 1.29% |
| Boston (BOS) | 1,577 | 75.1% | 78.1% | −3.0 | 1.27% | 0.71% |
| Washington (DCA) | 1,489 | 65.7% | 75.4% | −9.7 | 1.95% | 0.89% |
| Detroit (DTW) | 1,405 | 72.1% | 79.3% | −7.2 | 0.78% | 0.54% |
| Newark (EWR) | 1,387 | 67.8% | 77.9% | −10.1 | 3.97% | 1.18% |
| New York (JFK) | 1,372 | 64.8% | 79.5% | −14.7 | 2.70% | 0.99% |
| San Francisco (SFO) | 1,345 | 81.4% | 75.6% | +5.8 | 0.45% | 0.97% |
| Minneapolis (MSP) | 1,341 | 73.1% | 77.2% | −4.1 | 0.37% | 0.53% |
| Houston (IAH) | 1,307 | 67.4% | 61.6% | +5.8 | 0.99% | 2.27% |
| Miami (MIA) | 1,219 | 71.0% | 63.0% | +8.0 | 0.25% | 1.16% |
| Salt Lake City (SLC) | 1,193 | 86.2% | 82.0% | +4.2 | 0.42% | 0.48% |
| Philadelphia (PHL) | 1,118 | 63.4% | 75.9% | −12.5 | 1.34% | 1.24% |
| Nashville (BNA) | 1,097 | 63.4% | 73.9% | −10.5 | 1.28% | 0.94% |
| Baltimore (BWI) | 1,080 | 61.6% | 69.8% | −8.2 | 0.83% | 0.82% |
| Fort Lauderdale (FLL) | 1,015 | 71.8% | 70.0% | +1.8 | 0.59% | 0.98% |
| San Diego (SAN) | 1,003 | 81.6% | 73.9% | +7.7 | 0.80% | 0.97% |
| Austin (AUS) | 960 | 72.6% | 66.3% | +6.3 | 0.52% | 1.71% |
| Tampa (TPA) | 847 | 75.1% | 72.3% | +2.8 | 0.94% | 1.13% |
| Chicago (MDW) | 838 | 61.7% | 71.2% | −9.5 | 2.15% | 0.48% |
| Dallas (DAL) | 760 | 65.7% | 61.2% | +4.5 | 0.26% | 3.54% |
“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 Memorial Day weekend 2024
No route reached 500 flights over the 4 days, so none is ranked. The busiest were HNL to OGG (128 flights, 91.2% on time against 83.8% normally), OGG to HNL (127 flights, 85.4% on time against 80.6% normally) and LAX to SFO (121 flights, 65.0% on time against 61.7% normally); 4 of the ten busiest beat their normal weeks, and all ten appear below with a small-sample mark.
| Route | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HNL to OGGsmall sample | 128 | 91.2% | 83.8% | +7.4 | 2.34% | 2.34% |
| OGG to HNLsmall sample | 127 | 85.4% | 80.6% | +4.8 | 3.15% | 2.56% |
| LAX to SFOsmall sample | 121 | 65.0% | 61.7% | +3.3 | 0.00% | 0.35% |
| SFO to LAXsmall sample | 120 | 77.5% | 73.4% | +4.1 | 0.00% | 0.35% |
| LGA to ORDsmall sample | 115 | 51.4% | 77.2% | −25.8 | 4.35% | 1.57% |
| ORD to LGAsmall sample | 115 | 53.2% | 71.9% | −18.7 | 3.48% | 1.35% |
| DCA to BOSsmall sample | 105 | 58.7% | 74.0% | −15.3 | 0.95% | 0.65% |
| BOS to DCAsmall sample | 105 | 74.0% | 75.8% | −1.8 | 0.00% | 0.52% |
| LAX to LASsmall sample | 104 | 66.3% | 71.4% | −5.1 | 0.00% | 0.80% |
| JFK to LAXsmall sample | 104 | 55.3% | 85.5% | −30.2 | 0.00% | 0.00% |
“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 Memorial Day weekend 2024
Envoy Air had the weakest holiday at 60.4% on time, 22.6 points behind Hawaiian Airlines at 83.0%. Endeavor Air lost the most ground against its own normal weeks, 14.5 points. Hawaiian Airlines gained the most on its normal weeks, 7.0 points.
For connections, the hour-late figure matters more than the on-time rate. 11.4% of arrivals over Memorial Day weekend 2024 were an hour or more late, against 9.8% normally, up 1.6 points. Chicago (ORD) had the highest share among large airports at 26.4%.
Cancellations were local rather than general. Overall 1.40% of flights were called off against 1.45% normally, but New York (LGA) reached 5.46% and Newark (EWR) 3.97%.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 15,090 | 75.8% | 72.5% | +3.3 | 0.29% | 0.72% |
| Delta Air Lines | 10,929 | 69.4% | 80.9% | −11.5 | 0.03% | 0.08% |
| American Airlines | 10,894 | 64.8% | 62.3% | +2.5 | 2.01% | 4.53% |
| United Airlines | 8,224 | 73.4% | 76.0% | −2.6 | 0.94% | 0.94% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 7,851 | 78.9% | 79.7% | −0.8 | 1.85% | 0.89% |
| Republic Airways | 3,151 | 76.1% | 86.5% | −10.4 | 5.71% | 0.72% |
| Spirit Airlines | 3,094 | 72.3% | 73.0% | −0.7 | 1.65% | 1.14% |
| Envoy Air | 3,041 | 60.4% | 64.4% | −4.0 | 2.43% | 3.55% |
| Alaska Airlines | 2,842 | 79.3% | 74.8% | +4.5 | 0.25% | 0.60% |
| JetBlue Airways | 2,760 | 72.1% | 76.8% | −4.7 | 1.34% | 0.54% |
| Frontier Airlines | 2,535 | 63.4% | 63.3% | +0.1 | 2.76% | 3.40% |
| PSA Airlines | 2,346 | 70.5% | 74.3% | −3.8 | 1.75% | 1.16% |
| Endeavor Air | 1,926 | 70.0% | 84.5% | −14.5 | 5.30% | 1.06% |
| Allegiant Air | 1,686 | 74.8% | 77.5% | −2.7 | 0.00% | 0.62% |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 868 | 83.0% | 76.0% | +7.0 | 3.57% | 2.04% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Year on year
Memorial Day weekend across the years
2024 was the weakest Memorial Day weekend in the data: 84.6% in 2023, 72.0% in 2024, 77.9% in 2025 and 74.2% in 2026. 3 of those 4 years showed a measurable holiday effect.
| Year | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 73,454 | 84.6% | 79.2% | +5.4 | 0.46% | 0.70% |
| 2024 (this page) | 77,237 | 72.0% | 74.2% | −2.2 | 1.40% | 1.45% |
| 2025 | 78,097 | 77.9% | 76.6% | +1.3 | 0.65% | 0.82% |
| 2026 | 79,261 | 74.2% | 78.8% | −4.6 | 0.95% | 0.95% |
“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 Memorial Day weekend
What 2024 suggests for a future Memorial Day weekend: Saturday 25 May was the best day to fly; book before the evening, since 5pm–8pm departures ran 29.3 points worse than 5am–8am ones; and allow extra connection time at Atlanta (ATL) and Chicago (ORD). A single year can be decided by one storm, so weigh it against the other years before planning around it.
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
- Memorial Day weekend: every year and the next one
- Memorial Day weekend 2023
- Memorial Day weekend 2025
- Memorial Day weekend 2026
- Press kit: chart, data file and summary for Memorial Day weekend 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
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) all year
- Denver International (DEN) 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.