5 US Airports to Avoid for Connections (And 5 That Won't Strand You)

In May 2025, fewer than half the flights at Newark Liberty arrived on time — 49.21%, during the year's air-traffic-control crisis. A missed connection is rarely bad luck. It's usually a predictable outcome of the airport you chose to change planes in, and the Bureau of Transportation Statistics publishes the on-time data for every major US airport, for free. This episode covers five airports whose federal on-time records and operating problems make them the riskiest places for a tight connection, and five that the same data says will actually get you to your next gate. Avoid: — Philadelphia (PHL) — Chicago O'Hare (ORD) — Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) — San Francisco (SFO) — Newark (EWR) Buy (4 of 5 are Delta hubs): — Phoenix (PHX) — Detroit (DTW) — Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) — Atlanta (ATL) — Salt Lake City (SLC) Sources cited in this video: — BTS on-time airport rankings (USAFacts summary): https://usafacts.org/articles/what-ar... — BTS Annual On-Time Arrival Rankings for Major Airports: https://www.bts.gov/annual-time-arriv... — FAA scheduling-limits order at O'Hare (Federal Register, Apr 2026): https://www.federalregister.gov/docum... — SFO fog ground-delay program / 36-per-hour cap (VisaHQ): https://www.visahq.com/news/2025-12-0... — SFO low-cloud delays (NBC Bay Area): https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local... — Best/worst US airports for delays (Kiplinger): https://www.kiplinger.com/personal-fi... No airport paid us. The list is the research. For business inquiries: [your email here] #TheHiddenBoardingPass #flightdelays #traveltips