PHX → LAX Flight Reliability

Right now

Origin · PHXNo disruption reported

Aviation weather is not currently a factor.

Updated 08:51 UTC

Phoenix airport profile →

Destination · LAXNo disruption reported

Aviation weather is not currently a factor.

Updated 08:53 UTC

Los Angeles airport profile →

Route reliability

July 2023 – July 2026

Route Reliability Score

80/ 100Strong

Better than 87% of comparable major US routes (4,598 compared)

Calculated from 22,501 flights. How this is calculated

On-time arrivals

83.0%

18,598 of 22,403

Cancellation rate

0.40%

89 cancelled

Median arrival delay

-6 min

Average 3.0 min

Severe delays

4.8%

60+ minutes late

Delay when late

58 min

Average, when 15+ min late

Flights analyzed

22,501

5 carriers

PHX → LAX arrives on time 83.0% of the time; the return trip, LAX → PHX, arrives on time 81.5% of the time.

PHX → LAX spends 27.0 minutes on the ground on a 370-mile trip: 16.7 minutes from pushback to wheels-up at PHX and 10.3 minutes from touchdown to gate at LAX.

Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026

What stands out

This route holds up about the same all year, a steadier seasonal pattern than 97% of 3,357 comparable routes.

87.0% on time in its best month (September) against 78.0% in its worst (June).

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 3,357 in the comparison.

Why PHX → LAX flights are cancelled

July 2023 – July 2026

PHX → LAX cancelled 89 of 22,501 scheduled flights — about 1 in every 253. The reason filed most often was the airline, 46.1% of the cancellations coded on this route — about 1 in every 549 scheduled flights.

Share of cancellations

Airline46.1%

Air traffic28.1%

Weather25.8%

Security0.0%

Of 89 cancelled departures carrying a reason code.

What each reason means

The airline1 in 549

Crew, maintenance, aircraft cleaning, baggage or fueling: what BTS counts as within the carrier’s own control.

41 cancellations, 46.1% of the total.

The air traffic system1 in 900

Airport capacity, air traffic control flow programs, heavy traffic and ordinary bad weather. A system decision, not the airline’s.

25 cancellations, 28.1% of the total.

Extreme weather1 in 978

Conditions the carrier judged severe enough to stop the flight: a blizzard, a hurricane, a line of thunderstorms.

23 cancellations, 25.8% of the total.

Security—

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.

89 coded cancellations were recorded on PHX → LAX; the section appears from 50.

When it goes wrong

July 2023 – July 2026

One arrival in ten is worse than

30 min late

against a median of 6 min early

Arrived an hour or more late4.8%

Typical delay when late58 min

Cancelled0.40%

Landed somewhere else0.04%

Percentiles over 22,501 operations; cancelled and diverted flights are counted separately.

Will your connection be tight enough?

Layovers at LAX after arriving from PHX.

Connection buffer and chance of missing by layover length, PHX → LAX arrivals
Connection time	Chance of missing	Reads as
30 min	33%	Likely to miss
45 min	16%	High risk
60 min	9.9%	Some risk
90 min	4.7%	Low risk
120 min	2.5%	Low 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 0.40% of the time and diverts 0.04% of the time, which a late arrival never shows up in.

Chance of missing is the share of 22,403 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 30 minutes late (90th-percentile gate arrival delay), over 22,501 operations.

Any other layover length: connection checker.

Best time to fly

PHX → LAX flights departing 5–9 AM arrived on time 92.7% of the time, against 68.1% for 9 PM–5 AM departures, a gap of 24.6 percentage points.

By day and hour

On-time arrival rate for each weekday and scheduled departure hour, in local time at the departure airport (PHX).

Hour of departure matters more than day of the week: hourly averages sit a typical 8.3 points from the route-wide rate, weekday averages 3.2 points.

On-time arrival rate for PHX to LAX by weekday and scheduled departure hour, local time. Each button reads out one slot.
Hour	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
6 AM–7 AM
7 AM–8 AM
8 AM–9 AM
9 AM–10 AM
10 AM–11 AM
11 AM–12 PM
12 PM–1 PM
1 PM–2 PM
2 PM–3 PM
3 PM–4 PM
4 PM–5 PM
5 PM–6 PM
6 PM–7 PM
7 PM–8 PM
8 PM–9 PM
9 PM–10 PM

On-time rate, % · stronger color, fewer on time

50–59
60–69
70–79
80–89
90–99

Fewer than 120 flights, not scored

Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · On time is arrival within 15 minutes of schedule. Cells round to whole percentages; the table shows one decimal.

No slot is named best or worst: too few reach 500 flights. Departures before 6 AM and after 10 PM (529 flights) are not drawn: no slot in those hours has enough flights to score.

View as tableHide table

On-time arrival rate (%) with flights beneath, by scheduled departure hour and weekday for PHX to LAX. A dash means fewer than 120 flights, which are not scored.
Hour	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
6 AM–7 AM	95.7% on time397 flights	95.8% on time382 flights	97.1% on time384 flights	97.4% on time386 flights	94.6% on time388 flights	95.0% on time366 flights	92.7% on time388 flights
7 AM–8 AM	92.1% on time267 flights	90.9% on time253 flights	92.2% on time258 flights	91.9% on time271 flights	92.3% on time276 flights	92.4% on time252 flights	90.1% on time253 flights
8 AM–9 AM	84.1% on time166 flights	89.3% on time159 flights	88.1% on time160 flights	84.3% on time159 flights	83.3% on time162 flights	89.5% on time154 flights	88.5% on time192 flights
9 AM–10 AM	113 flights, too few to score	88 flights, too few to score	90 flights, too few to score	116 flights, too few to score	119 flights, too few to score	75 flights, too few to score	86 flights, too few to score
10 AM–11 AM	87.5% on time321 flights	90.6% on time343 flights	90.9% on time343 flights	87.4% on time320 flights	84.8% on time318 flights	88.9% on time315 flights	83.7% on time317 flights
11 AM–12 PM	82.7% on time212 flights	86.9% on time199 flights	88.2% on time205 flights	86.5% on time210 flights	78.4% on time215 flights	91.4% on time178 flights	81.7% on time177 flights
12 PM–1 PM	105 flights, too few to score	89.2% on time121 flights	119 flights, too few to score	96 flights, too few to score	98 flights, too few to score	96 flights, too few to score	77.4% on time124 flights
1 PM–2 PM	86.3% on time170 flights	91.3% on time150 flights	86.1% on time151 flights	82.2% on time169 flights	80.9% on time163 flights	85.8% on time169 flights	80.1% on time181 flights
2 PM–3 PM	77.1% on time172 flights	91.0% on time180 flights	86.5% on time180 flights	85.1% on time181 flights	73.9% on time184 flights	84.8% on time197 flights	84.5% on time182 flights
3 PM–4 PM	75.5% on time206 flights	84.8% on time204 flights	78.7% on time202 flights	76.4% on time203 flights	74.2% on time198 flights	86.1% on time122 flights	79.3% on time152 flights
4 PM–5 PM	77.9% on time226 flights	84.1% on time222 flights	81.1% on time228 flights	78.4% on time222 flights	83.0% on time225 flights	79.7% on time197 flights	71.2% on time212 flights
5 PM–6 PM	79.1% on time172 flights	80.6% on time139 flights	73.7% on time137 flights	77.9% on time163 flights	74.1% on time172 flights	80.4% on time184 flights	63.4% on time186 flights
6 PM–7 PM	64.9% on time152 flights	78.1% on time128 flights	80.6% on time134 flights	58.1% on time160 flights	65.2% on time164 flights	81.0% on time137 flights	118 flights, too few to score
7 PM–8 PM	77.8% on time158 flights	88.7% on time196 flights	83.0% on time200 flights	75.8% on time157 flights	78.5% on time149 flights	81.4% on time145 flights	66.0% on time201 flights
8 PM–9 PM	67.9% on time252 flights	79.0% on time238 flights	76.7% on time259 flights	68.1% on time255 flights	75.0% on time242 flights	69.7% on time152 flights	56.8% on time244 flights
9 PM–10 PM	74.2% on time162 flights	110 flights, too few to score	111 flights, too few to score	71.8% on time157 flights	69.9% on time154 flights	96 flights, too few to score	67.4% on time148 flights

By departure window

5–9 AM92.7%

9 AM–12 PM87.0%

12–3 PM84.2%

3–6 PM78.1%

6–9 PM73.1%

9 PM–5 AM68.1%

By departure hour

12 AM

3 AM

6 AM

9 AM

12 PM

3 PM

6 PM

9 PM

Why PHX → LAX runs late

July 2023 – July 2026

Late-arriving aircraft43.3%

the inbound aircraft was late, so this flight started late

The airline40.8%

crew, maintenance, boarding and fueling, all within the carrier’s control

Air traffic control11.3%

airspace and airport capacity, including weather-driven flow control

Weather4.5%

weather severe enough to stop this flight specifically

Security0.2%

screening or terminal security incidents

Share of the delay minutes US DOT attributed to each cause for PHX → LAX. Only delays of 15 minutes or more are attributed.

Late-arriving aircraft is the largest cause on PHX → LAX, at 43.3%: flights here mostly leave late because the plane came in late, and the day shows it: 5–9 AM departures arrived on time 92.7% of the time and 9 PM–5 AM departures 68.1%.

How this route holds up in bad weather

July 2023 – July 2026

The harder-hit end is the one the flight leaves from, where a cancellation keeps it from departing at all. Bad weather cancels 3.9 times the normal rate at PHX against 1.3 times at LAX. Cancelled in bad weather against normal hours: PHX 2.5% against 0.6%, LAX 1.0% against 0.8%. Flights that did leave PHX in bad weather arrived on time 53.7% of the time, against 80.6% in normal hours.

Bad weather and normal hours at the airports

Scheduled departures, July 2023 – July 2026

Departures from PHX and LAX in hours of bad weather and in normal hours
Departures from	PHX	LAX
Cancelled in bad weather	2.5%	1.0%
Cancelled in normal hours	0.6%	0.8%
Arrived on time, bad weather	53.7%	78.9%
Arrived on time, normal hours	80.6%	81.4%
Departures in bad weather	6,215	60,639

These are airport figures, not route figures: every scheduled departure from PHX and LAX, to any destination, in hours the weather report called bad.

Weather source and limits. In full: PHX, LAX, What Weather Costs Each Airport, Who Cancels More When the Weather Turns, Airports That Change Places When Weather Turns.

Airlines on this route

Carriers with at least 200 flights, by the airline that operated each one.

Airlines on this route
Carrier	Flights	On time	Cancelled	Median delay	Severe
SkyWest Airlines	6,797	89.8%	0.34%	-9 min	3.1%
Southwest Airlines	6,426	75.0%	0.34%	-1 min	5.8%
American Airlines	6,033	80.6%	0.25%	-5 min	6.0%
United Airlines	1,738	90.3%	1.15%	-10 min	3.1%
Frontier Airlines	1,175	85.8%	0.68%	-10 min	5.4%

SkyWest Airlines flew 30.7% of the 22,169 flights listed.

United Airlines arrived on time 15.3 percentage points more often than Southwest Airlines on this route.

Other ways to fly Phoenix to Los Angeles

Airport pairs in the same two city markets, as the DOT defines them.

Other ways to fly Phoenix to Los Angeles
Route	Flights	On time	Cancelled	Median delay	Score
PHX→LAX this route Phoenix to Los Angeles	22,501	83.0%	0.40%	-6 min	80
PHX→SNA Phoenix to Santa Ana	13,640	81.8%	0.53%	-6 min	78

Flights on this route

Flight numbers with at least 600 operations here and still on the schedule.

Flights on this route
Flight	Scheduled	Operations	On time
OO4057 SkyWest Airlines	6:20 AM	838	94.9%

Weekly and seasonal patterns

By day of week

Mon82.2%

Tue87.6%

Wed86.0%

Thu81.5%

Fri80.8%

Sat85.6%

Sun78.0%

Tuesday is historically the most reliable day and Sunday the least, a gap of 9.6 percentage points.

By month

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

June is historically the weakest month and September the strongest, a spread of 9.0 percentage points.

Reliability over time

July 2023 – July 2026

24

25

26

Over the most recent 12 months (2025-08 to 2026-07), on-time arrivals averaged 82.1% against 86.3% in the 12 months before — declining by 4.2 percentage points.

Data and methodology

Calculated by FlyerIntel from 22,501 PHX → LAX 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

Analysis last recomputed September 26, 2026

PHX airport LAX airport Return direction LAX → PHX

PHX→LAX

Right now

Route reliability

What stands out

Why PHX → LAX flights are cancelled

Share of cancellations

What each reason means

When it goes wrong

Will your connection be tight enough?

Best time to fly

By day and hour

By departure window

By departure hour

Why PHX → LAX runs late

How this route holds up in bad weather

Bad weather and normal hours at the airports

Airlines on this route

Other ways to fly Phoenix to Los Angeles

Flights on this route

Weekly and seasonal patterns

By day of week

By month

Reliability over time

Data and methodology