Travelers planning to fly during Labor Day weekend should anticipate potential delays, as a new ranking highlights airlines and airports with the highest disruption rates. The analysis, which examined U.S. Department of Transportation data from 2020 to 2025, identified JetBlue as the airline with the highest percentage of delayed Labor Day departures, at 23.1%.
Other airlines with significant delay rates include Frontier, American, and Southwest, all averaging around 20% for delayed departures over the past five years. In contrast, Hawaiian Airlines reported the lowest delay rate at 8.3%, followed by Delta with 10.0%.
When it comes to flight cancellations, American Airlines had the highest share during Labor Day weekend, with 2% of flights canceled. This is more than double Delta Airlines' cancellation rate of 0.4%.
Airport Performance
At the airport level, Dallas Love Field was ranked as the worst for Labor Day travel delays, with 20.7% of its departures running late between 2020 and 2025. A notable incident occurred in July when the WNBA team The Liberty was reportedly stranded on the tarmac at Dallas Love Field for 10 hours.
Other airports experiencing significant delays include Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International (19.4%), Dallas/Fort Worth International (19.0%), and Houston’s William P. Hobby (18.9%).
Conversely, Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in Honolulu recorded the best on-time performance, with only 8.9% of departures delayed. Major hubs like Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International and Minneapolis-St. Paul International also demonstrated reliability, with 10.4% of departures delayed.
During last year's Labor Day weekend, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International was noted as the best-performing major airport, with 9.5% of its nearly 7,000 departures delayed and a cancellation rate of 0.14%. However, Dallas/Fort Worth International was the worst-performing major airport during Labor Day 2025, experiencing a 25.5% delay rate and a 7.16% cancellation rate for its approximately 6,900 departures.
According to Rightway Parking, the firm behind the ranking, understanding historical performance data can help travelers mitigate potential disruptions. Building in extra buffer time when flying through lower-ranked hubs is advised for a smoother travel experience.