Holiday record
Thanksgiving week 2025 flight delays
Saturday 22 November 2025 to Sunday 30 November 2025 · 172,288 flights
Historical statistics for Thanksgiving week 2025, not live status and not a forecast for a future Thanksgiving week.
By the numbers, Thanksgiving week 2025 was an ordinary stretch of flying. The on-time rate edged up to 77.8% from 76.3% in the surrounding weeks, late flights averaged 76 minutes against 77, and cancellations were 1.74% against 2.09%, all inside the range a normal fortnight produces.
Key figures
On time
77.8%
Normal weeks: 76.3%
Avg delay
76 min
Delayed flights only. Normal weeks: 77 min
Cancelled
1.74%
Normal weeks: 2.09%
1 hour+ late
8.5%
Normal weeks: 9.1%
The window ran from Saturday 22 November 2025 to Sunday 30 November 2025, 9 days carrying 172,288 scheduled flights. That is about 19,143 a day against 18,914 a day across the 25 baseline days, almost exactly the same daily schedule.
Against normal weeks
Thanksgiving week 2025 next to the weeks around it
| Period | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All flights, Thanksgiving week 2025 | 172,288 | 77.8% | 76.3% | +1.5 | 1.74% | 2.09% |
“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 Thanksgiving week ran best
Sunday 30 November at 53.1% on time closed the window as its worst day, 12.0 points below the 65.1% of ordinary Sundays. The best day was Thursday 27 November at 92.5%, while Sunday 30 November was the busiest, with 21,576 flights scheduled. 3 of the 9 days ran below the figure for the same weekday in the baseline weeks.
Against the same weekday in normal weeks, day by day: Sat 22 +7.2, Sun 23 +19.8, Mon 24 +3.3, Tue 25 +3.6, Wed 26 −2.5, Thu 27 +14.5, Fri 28 +5.1, Sat 29 −13.3, Sun 30 −12.0 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday 22 November | 18,828 | 87.4% | 80.2% | +7.2 | 0.21% | 2.61% |
| Sunday 23 November | 20,588 | 84.9% | 65.1% | +19.8 | 0.17% | 5.28% |
| Monday 24 November | 20,177 | 78.2% | 74.9% | +3.3 | 1.06% | 1.44% |
| Tuesday 25 November | 20,739 | 82.1% | 78.5% | +3.6 | 0.22% | 0.40% |
| Wednesday 26 November | 20,783 | 77.9% | 80.4% | −2.5 | 0.30% | 0.26% |
| Thursday 27 November | 11,001 | 92.5% | 78.0% | +14.5 | 0.15% | 2.07% |
| Friday 28 November | 18,380 | 84.4% | 79.3% | +5.1 | 0.34% | 1.30% |
| Saturday 29 November | 20,216 | 66.9% | 80.2% | −13.3 | 8.37% | 2.61% |
| Sunday 30 November | 21,576 | 53.1% | 65.1% | −12.0 | 3.85% | 5.28% |
“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: 70.1% on time for 5pm–8pm departures against 87.6% for 5am–8am. The 11am–2pm window moved most against its normal weeks, 2.5 points better than 76.7%.
| Departure | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5am–8am | 29,147 | 87.6% | 86.1% | +1.5 | 1.33% | 1.46% |
| 8am–11am | 32,031 | 82.9% | 80.7% | +2.2 | 1.44% | 1.82% |
| 11am–2pm | 30,525 | 79.2% | 76.7% | +2.5 | 1.54% | 1.83% |
| 2pm–5pm | 29,546 | 74.2% | 71.9% | +2.3 | 1.79% | 2.25% |
| 5pm–8pm | 28,003 | 70.1% | 68.8% | +1.3 | 1.98% | 2.71% |
| 8pm–5am | 23,036 | 70.2% | 72.6% | −2.4 | 2.59% | 2.67% |
“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 Thanksgiving week 2025
68 airports scheduled at least 500 departures. Chicago (ORD) at 63.6%, Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) at 65.0% and Milwaukee (MKE) at 69.5% ran the lowest on-time rates, Burbank (BUR) at 84.7%, Las Vegas (LAS) at 84.3% and Tucson (TUS) at 84.1% the highest. Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) fell furthest against its own normal weeks, from 73.8% to 65.0%. In all, 29 of 68 ran below their own figures for the surrounding weeks.
14% of the holiday's departures left from just three airports, Chicago (ORD, 8,450 departures, 63.6% on time), Denver (DEN, 7,710 departures, 81.2% on time) and Atlanta (ATL, 7,629 departures, 78.0% on time).
The large airports that did better than usual were New York (LGA, +16.1 points), Cincinnati (CVG, +9.7 points) and New York (JFK, +8.3 points).
Not all delays were equal. Delayed departures from Cincinnati (CVG) averaged 104 minutes, against 87 in its normal weeks, the longest of any large airport; at Oakland (OAK) the average was 42 minutes.
Holiday traffic did not rise evenly. Daily departures rose most at San Juan (SJU, +16%), Fort Myers (RSW, +10%) and Tampa (TPA, +9%), and fell most at New York (LGA, −8%). The growth cost punctuality at one of the three.
| Airport | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago (ORD) | 8,450 | 63.6% | 65.4% | −1.8 | 9.87% | 3.27% |
| Denver (DEN) | 7,710 | 81.2% | 80.0% | +1.2 | 0.44% | 0.97% |
| Atlanta (ATL) | 7,629 | 78.0% | 75.8% | +2.2 | 0.60% | 3.25% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) | 7,449 | 65.0% | 73.8% | −8.8 | 1.70% | 3.17% |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 5,180 | 79.3% | 79.6% | −0.3 | 0.77% | 1.32% |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 4,749 | 79.4% | 80.4% | −1.0 | 0.67% | 1.36% |
| Charlotte (CLT) | 4,472 | 79.7% | 76.4% | +3.3 | 0.89% | 1.51% |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 4,233 | 84.3% | 79.3% | +5.0 | 0.50% | 1.14% |
| Orlando (MCO) | 4,104 | 80.5% | 76.8% | +3.7 | 0.90% | 1.65% |
| Seattle (SEA) | 3,805 | 83.0% | 79.1% | +3.9 | 0.45% | 1.49% |
| San Francisco (SFO) | 3,610 | 83.5% | 81.5% | +2.0 | 0.55% | 1.38% |
| Boston (BOS) | 3,383 | 82.2% | 74.6% | +7.6 | 1.21% | 1.69% |
| Washington (DCA) | 3,283 | 72.8% | 67.2% | +5.6 | 1.04% | 3.27% |
| New York (LGA) | 3,279 | 76.8% | 60.7% | +16.1 | 0.79% | 4.45% |
| Newark (EWR) | 3,076 | 79.8% | 75.5% | +4.3 | 0.88% | 4.26% |
| Houston (IAH) | 2,994 | 74.8% | 79.8% | −5.0 | 0.57% | 0.81% |
| Detroit (DTW) | 2,912 | 74.3% | 68.1% | +6.2 | 2.09% | 2.50% |
| Miami (MIA) | 2,830 | 74.1% | 75.7% | −1.6 | 0.64% | 1.76% |
| Salt Lake City (SLC) | 2,724 | 83.8% | 86.6% | −2.8 | 0.33% | 1.30% |
| Nashville (BNA) | 2,646 | 78.7% | 76.7% | +2.0 | 0.79% | 1.31% |
| New York (JFK) | 2,587 | 80.5% | 72.2% | +8.3 | 1.62% | 3.39% |
| Minneapolis (MSP) | 2,566 | 70.3% | 70.5% | −0.2 | 1.60% | 2.03% |
| Fort Lauderdale (FLL) | 2,476 | 75.2% | 75.2% | 0.0 | 1.37% | 2.11% |
| San Diego (SAN) | 2,430 | 82.4% | 77.4% | +5.0 | 0.91% | 2.03% |
| Baltimore (BWI) | 2,424 | 79.9% | 75.7% | +4.2 | 0.78% | 1.20% |
| Philadelphia (PHL) | 2,255 | 76.7% | 71.3% | +5.4 | 1.11% | 2.13% |
| Austin (AUS) | 2,238 | 76.1% | 77.4% | −1.3 | 0.58% | 0.97% |
| Tampa (TPA) | 2,060 | 81.6% | 78.4% | +3.2 | 1.36% | 1.79% |
| Dallas (DAL) | 1,794 | 73.3% | 77.6% | −4.3 | 2.17% | 1.64% |
| Chicago (MDW) | 1,736 | 74.7% | 76.1% | −1.4 | 7.72% | 1.17% |
“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 Thanksgiving week 2025
The busiest routes were LAX to SFO (271 flights, 72.3% on time against 70.4% normally), SFO to LAX (271 flights, 79.3% on time against 77.3% normally) and LGA to ORD (268 flights, 60.6% on time against 56.7% normally). No route reached 500 flights in 9 days, so the table shows the ten busiest with a small-sample mark and they are not ranked. 8 of those ten ran above their normal on-time rate.
| Route | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAX to SFOsmall sample | 271 | 72.3% | 70.4% | +1.9 | 0.00% | 1.37% |
| SFO to LAXsmall sample | 271 | 79.3% | 77.3% | +2.0 | 0.00% | 1.64% |
| LGA to ORDsmall sample | 268 | 60.6% | 56.7% | +3.9 | 4.85% | 4.37% |
| ORD to LGAsmall sample | 268 | 59.4% | 55.6% | +3.8 | 5.22% | 4.00% |
| LAX to JFKsmall sample | 246 | 78.6% | 79.7% | −1.1 | 0.81% | 2.02% |
| JFK to LAXsmall sample | 246 | 81.6% | 76.6% | +5.0 | 0.41% | 2.02% |
| HNL to OGGsmall sample | 244 | 89.8% | 91.4% | −1.6 | 0.00% | 1.55% |
| OGG to HNLsmall sample | 244 | 90.6% | 87.0% | +3.6 | 0.00% | 1.55% |
| PHX to DENsmall sample | 240 | 79.9% | 78.4% | +1.5 | 0.42% | 1.29% |
| DEN to PHXsmall sample | 240 | 76.2% | 75.9% | +0.3 | 0.00% | 1.29% |
“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 Thanksgiving week 2025
Only 10.0 points separated the carriers, with Delta Air Lines first at 81.8% and PSA Airlines last at 71.8%. American Airlines lost the most ground against its own normal weeks, 3.1 points. Republic Airways gained the most on its normal weeks, 10.1 points.
Tight connections depend less on the on-time rate than on how many flights ran badly late. 8.5% of arrivals over Thanksgiving week 2025 were an hour or more late, against 9.1% normally, down 0.6 points. Chicago (ORD) had the highest share among large airports at 20.0%.
Cancellations were local rather than general. Overall 1.74% of flights were called off against 2.09% normally, but Chicago (ORD) reached 9.87% and Chicago (MDW) 7.72%.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 35,486 | 79.3% | 78.4% | +0.9 | 1.10% | 0.94% |
| Delta Air Lines | 24,395 | 81.8% | 77.4% | +4.4 | 0.21% | 2.67% |
| American Airlines | 23,438 | 71.9% | 75.0% | −3.1 | 1.36% | 1.76% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 19,897 | 78.5% | 75.7% | +2.8 | 3.78% | 2.97% |
| United Airlines | 19,649 | 78.4% | 78.7% | −0.3 | 1.46% | 0.84% |
| Republic Airways | 8,392 | 80.9% | 70.8% | +10.1 | 2.65% | 4.31% |
| Envoy Air | 7,248 | 76.2% | 77.5% | −1.3 | 5.23% | 3.48% |
| JetBlue Airways | 6,422 | 76.2% | 71.9% | +4.3 | 2.87% | 2.14% |
| Frontier Airlines | 6,174 | 75.4% | 76.0% | −0.6 | 1.52% | 1.92% |
| Alaska Airlines | 6,048 | 81.2% | 78.4% | +2.8 | 0.89% | 1.55% |
| PSA Airlines | 5,837 | 71.8% | 66.9% | +4.9 | 2.62% | 4.45% |
| Spirit Airlines | 3,703 | 77.6% | 76.7% | +0.9 | 1.73% | 2.38% |
| Allegiant Air | 3,630 | 72.0% | 74.6% | −2.6 | 1.05% | 0.64% |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 1,969 | 79.9% | 81.8% | −1.9 | 0.51% | 1.59% |
“Normal weeks” are the two weeks either side of the holiday, leaving out other holiday periods. Change is in percentage points.
Year on year
Thanksgiving week across the years
On-time rate by year: 83.2% in 2023, 83.6% in 2024 and 77.8% in 2025. 2025 sits at the bottom of it. By this site's test, 1 year out of 3 had a real holiday effect.
| Year | Flights | On time | Normal weeks | Change | Cancelled | Normal weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 164,722 | 83.2% | 87.0% | −3.8 | 0.13% | 0.17% |
| 2024, close to normal | 175,194 | 83.6% | 84.2% | −0.6 | 0.14% | 0.36% |
| 2025 (this page) | 172,288 | 77.8% | 76.3% | +1.5 | 1.74% | 2.09% |
“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 Thanksgiving week
Lessons from 2025: avoid the final day of the window, the worst of 2025; book before the evening, since 5pm–8pm departures ran 17.5 points worse than 5am–8am ones; and allow extra connection time at Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) and Omaha (OMA). 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
- Thanksgiving week: every year and the next one
- Thanksgiving week 2023
- Thanksgiving week 2024
- Press kit: chart, data file and summary for Thanksgiving week 2025
- Every US travel holiday
- The holidays that fly better than a normal week
- The busiest US travel days, and what they cost in punctuality
- Chicago O'Hare International (ORD) all year
- Denver International (DEN) all year
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) 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.