Route profile
JFK→DFW
Flight reliability, delays and best times to fly from New York to Dallas–Fort Worth, 1,391 miles.
Right now
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Route reliability
July 2023 – July 2026
Better than 17% of comparable major US routes (4,598 compared)
Calculated from 6,013 flights. How this is calculated
JFK → DFW arrives on time 76.3% of the time; the return trip, DFW → JFK, arrives on time 77.6% of the time.
JFK → DFW spends 40.6 minutes on the ground on a 1,391-mile trip: 25.7 minutes from pushback to wheels-up at JFK and 14.8 minutes from touchdown to gate at DFW.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026
What stands out
This route's worst arrivals run unusually far past its typical one, a bigger gap than 91% of 4,598 comparable routes.
A typical arrival is 10 min early, but the worst tenth run 72 minutes worse than that.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Ranked against every other route with the same kind of figure and at least 4,598 in the comparison.
What sets this route apart
Where JFK to DFW differs most from similar routes by hour, weekday, month and airline, July 2023 – July 2026.
JFK to DFW is at its best against routes of similar length for flights scheduled at 2 PM: 77.9% arrive on time, 4.7 points ahead of the 73.2% those routes manage at that hour. Against all other routes the gap is 3.3 points.
JFK to DFW struggles most at 8 AM: 82.6% of its flights scheduled then arrive on time, 3.5 points behind the 86.1% on routes of similar length at the same hour. Against all other routes the gap is 3.3 points.
In May, JFK to DFW runs 6.7 points below routes of similar length, 67.6% on time to 74.3%. Against all other routes the gap is 7.7 points.
March is kinder to JFK to DFW than to routes of similar length: 82.3% on time against 77.7%, 4.6 points better. Against all other routes the gap is 4.4 points.
Delta Air Lines’ flights on JFK to DFW arrive on time 73.5% of the time, 9.1 points below the 82.6% it manages on its routes of similar length. Against all other routes the gap is 8 points.
JFK to DFW against comparable routes
July 2023 – July 2026| Measure | This route | Compared with | Them | Gap | Flights behind it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hour: 2 PM departures | 77.9% | routes of similar length | 73.2% | +4.7 pts | 975 here, 98,204 there |
| Hour: 8 AM departures | 82.6% | routes of similar length | 86.1% | −3.5 pts | 1,638 here, 130,941 there |
| Month: May | 67.6% | routes of similar length | 74.3% | −6.7 pts | 521 here, 149,255 there |
| Month: March | 82.3% | routes of similar length | 77.7% | +4.6 pts | 412 here, 152,067 there |
| Airline: Delta Air Lines | 73.5% | routes of similar length | 82.6% | −9.1 pts | 1,844 here, 350,945 there |
Each comparison pools the flights of other routes, with this route’s own left out. Similar length means within 15% of this route’s 1,391 miles, with at least 5 such routes. A bucket is set against the most comparable group that has enough flights: similar length, then the same origin (at least 3 routes), then all other routes. Hours, weekdays and months appear only where both sides have 120 completed flights, and airlines where both have 600. The gap must be at least 2 points and 2 standard errors, and only the largest gap each way is kept per measure. These are differences in the flights counted, not causes.
Why JFK → DFW flights are cancelled
July 2023 – July 2026
JFK → DFW cancelled 136 of 6,013 scheduled flights — about 1 in every 44. The reason filed most often was extreme weather, 75.0% of the cancellations coded on this route — about 1 in every 59 scheduled flights.
Share of cancellations
Of 136 cancelled departures carrying a reason code.
What each reason means
Conditions the carrier judged severe enough to stop the flight: a blizzard, a hurricane, a line of thunderstorms.
102 cancellations, 75.0% of the total.
Crew, maintenance, aircraft cleaning, baggage or fueling: what BTS counts as within the carrier’s own control.
24 cancellations, 17.6% of the total.
Airport capacity, air traffic control flow programs, heavy traffic and ordinary bad weather. A system decision, not the airline’s.
10 cancellations, 7.4% of the total.
A terminal evacuation, a security breach, screening equipment failure, or screening queues over 29 minutes.
0 cancellations, 0.0% of the total.
Reason codes are the operating airline’s own filing with US DOT, not an independent finding of fault. Ordinary bad weather is filed under air traffic, so weather’s full share is larger than its bar.
136 coded cancellations were recorded on JFK → DFW; the section appears from 50.
When it goes wrong
July 2023 – July 2026
62 min late
against a median of 10 min early
JFK → DFW has an average that understates its risk: a typical arrival is 10 min early, but the worst tenth are 72 minutes worse than that. If the trip has something unmissable at the end of it, the median is the wrong number to plan against.
Percentiles over 6,013 operations; cancelled and diverted flights are counted separately.
Will your connection be tight enough?
Layovers at DFW after arriving from JFK.
| Connection time | Chance of missing | Reads as |
|---|---|---|
| 30 min | 35% | Likely to miss |
| 45 min | 23% | High risk |
| 60 min | 16% | High risk |
| 90 min | 10% | Some risk |
| 120 min | 6.6% | Some risk |
This is one leg of a connection. Gate changes and the next flight's own schedule matter too. And a connection can fail before delay is even the question — this route cancels 2.26% of the time and diverts 0.85% of the time, which a late arrival never shows up in.
Chance of missing is the share of 5,826 arrivals on this route that landed later than the connection time less 30 minutes to reach the next gate.
The worst tenth of arrivals on this route land at least 62 minutes late (90th-percentile gate arrival delay), over 6,013 operations.
Any other layover length: connection checker.
Best time to fly
JFK → DFW flights departing 5–9 AM arrived on time 84.4% of the time, against 66.0% for 6–9 PM departures, a gap of 18.4 percentage points.
By departure window
By departure hour
- 12 AM to 5 AM: too few flights to score
- 6 AM: 94.0% on time from 176 flights
- 7 AM: 91.2% on time from 206 flights
- 8 AM: 82.6% on time from 1,679 flights
- 9 AM to 10 AM: too few flights to score
- 11 AM: 79.3% on time from 169 flights
- 12 PM: 81.3% on time from 235 flights
- 1 PM: 75.5% on time from 205 flights
- 2 PM: 77.9% on time from 1,009 flights
- 3 PM: 69.2% on time from 375 flights
- 4 PM: 68.9% on time from 510 flights
- 5 PM: 66.7% on time from 904 flights
- 6 PM: 66.0% on time from 509 flights
- 7 PM to 11 PM: too few flights to score
Why JFK → DFW runs late
July 2023 – July 2026
the inbound aircraft was late, so this flight started late
crew, maintenance, boarding and fueling, all within the carrier’s control
airspace and airport capacity, including weather-driven flow control
weather severe enough to stop this flight specifically
screening or terminal security incidents
Share of the delay minutes US DOT attributed to each cause for JFK → DFW. Only delays of 15 minutes or more are attributed.
Late-arriving aircraft is the largest cause on JFK → DFW, at 36.8%: flights here mostly leave late because the plane came in late, and the day shows it: 5–9 AM departures arrived on time 84.4% of the time and 6–9 PM departures 66.0%.
Airlines on this route
Carriers with at least 200 flights, by the airline that operated each one.
| Carrier | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Median delay | Severe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines | 3,879 | 77.8% | 2.19% | -11 min | 9.5% |
| Delta Air Lines | 1,907 | 73.5% | 2.52% | -9 min | 12.5% |
| Frontier Airlines | 225 | 75.0% | 1.33% | -6 min | 7.3% |
American Airlines flew 64.5% of the 6,011 flights listed. Delta Air Lines cancelled 2.52% of its flights here against 1.33% for Frontier Airlines.
American Airlines arrived on time 4.3 percentage points more often than Delta Air Lines on this route.
Other ways to fly New York to Dallas–Fort Worth
Airport pairs in the same two city markets, as the DOT defines them.
EWR → DFW is the most reliable pairing for this journey at 77.8% on time, against 74.7% for LGA → DFW.
Flying to DFW from the New York area? Compare JFK, LGA, EWR for DFW, with the same test for what counts as a real difference.
Flights on this route
Flight numbers with at least 600 operations here and still on the schedule.
Weekly and seasonal patterns
By day of week
Tuesday is historically the most reliable day and Sunday the least, a gap of 7.9 percentage points.
By month
- Jan: 73.4%
- Feb: 85.5%
- Mar: 82.3%
- Apr: 76.1%
- May: 67.6%
- Jun: 69.7%
- Jul: 67.6%
- Aug: 77.7%
- Sep: 80.4%
- Oct: 83.3%
- Nov: 84.4%
- Dec: 74.7%
May is historically the weakest month and February the strongest, a spread of 17.9 percentage points.
Reliability over time
July 2023 – July 2026
- July 2023: 62.8% from 155 flights
- August 2023: 84.4% from 155 flights
- September 2023: 78.9% from 174 flights
- October 2023: 85.2% from 163 flights
- November 2023: 90.1% from 152 flights
- December 2023: 84.0% from 150 flights
- January 2024: 70.7% from 154 flights
- February 2024: 88.9% from 145 flights
- March 2024: 85.5% from 155 flights
- April 2024: 74.3% from 150 flights
- May 2024: 60.7% from 155 flights
- June 2024: 69.4% from 150 flights
- July 2024: 67.1% from 155 flights
- August 2024: 71.9% from 155 flights
- September 2024: 80.8% from 177 flights
- October 2024: 91.5% from 165 flights
- November 2024: 87.4% from 149 flights
- December 2024: 72.7% from 165 flights
- January 2025: 68.3% from 147 flights
- February 2025: 82.0% from 132 flights
- March 2025: 80.4% from 145 flights
- April 2025: 73.6% from 152 flights
- May 2025: 66.5% from 204 flights
- June 2025: 67.3% from 208 flights
- July 2025: 70.2% from 217 flights
- August 2025: 76.8% from 217 flights
- September 2025: 81.3% from 186 flights
- October 2025: 74.0% from 179 flights
- November 2025: 77.0% from 177 flights
- December 2025: 68.3% from 174 flights
- January 2026: 82.9% from 128 flights
- February 2026: too few flights to score (110)
- March 2026: 80.3% from 121 flights
- April 2026: 80.7% from 143 flights
- May 2026: 74.3% from 182 flights
- June 2026: 72.9% from 180 flights
- July 2026: 69.0% from 187 flights
Over the most recent 12 months (2025-08 to 2026-07), on-time arrivals averaged 76.3% against 75.4% in the 12 months before — broadly unchanged.
Data and methodology
Calculated by FlyerIntel from 6,013 JFK → DFW flight records from the US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, covering July 2023 – July 2026. Late means 15 or more minutes past scheduled arrival; cancelled and diverted flights are left out of on-time rates.
Full methodology · Data sources · Report a problem
Related research: How Long a Layover Needs to Be · Two Airlines on One Route · Best Time of Day to Fly From Major US Airports
Analysis last recomputed