Itineraries flown on 20+ days in the Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026 schedule · each leg’s record Aug 2025 – Jul 2026

No nonstop, and no clear pattern: the best connection reaches Newark on time 73% of the time.

Best connections, any airlines

Ranked by chance you reach Newark on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Newark is 1 h ahead of Houston). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 05:35 → MSY 06:45WN 2049	3h 25m New Orleans	MSY 10:10 → EWR 14:13UA 2172	7h 38m	98%	89%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 05:00 → MCO 08:25WN 4483	1h 57m Orlando	MCO 10:22 → EWR 13:05UA 2120	7h 05m	98%	86%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 19:10 → DEN 20:55WN 4639	3h 04m Denver	DEN 23:59 → EWR 05:40 +1UA 1745	9h 30m	93%	84%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 19:55 → PHX 20:40WN 2065	3h 17m Phoenix	PHX 23:57 → EWR 07:41 +1UA 2078	10h 46m	100%	84%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 05:30 → DEN 06:55WN 1970	3h 07m Denver	DEN 10:02 → EWR 16:00UA 1423	9h 30m	100%	83%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 07:20 → STL 09:25WN 4084	2h 58m St Louis	STL 12:23 → EWR 16:00UA 3573 · flown by Republic	7h 40m	98%	80%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 06:20 → PHX 06:55WN 2062	2h 50m Phoenix	PHX 09:45 → EWR 17:36UA 2677	10h 16m	98%	75%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	HOU 05:50 → ATL 08:50WN 2622	3h 50m Atlanta	ATL 12:40 → EWR 15:01UA 1226	8h 11m	100%	74%
Tight connection: often missed
American Details →	HOU 09:30 → DFW 10:59AA 3573 · flown by Envoy	48m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 11:47 → EWR 16:20AA 2861	5h 50m	69%	37%

Same layover, different day-part

How often the first flight arrives too late to connect (45 min minimum), for one-ticket layovers of 45–80 minutes.

Morning

ATL · 58m · leaves 06:00 10%

DFW · 48m · leaves 09:30 31%

Delays build through the day, so an afternoon first leg eats the layover. A short connection is fine early in the morning and a gamble later on.

Mixing airlines

One ticketMiss it and the airline rebooks you; bags go through. 45 min is enough.

Separate ticketsMiss it and you buy a new ticket. Re-check bags, clear security again: we require 90 min.

The table above includes two-ticket connections (marked “two tickets”), held to the 90-minute minimum. One ticket only →

Regional partners count as the airline that sells them: SkyWest flying Delta Connection is one Delta ticket.

How these are worked out. Makes the connection: share of the last year’s flights where the first flight arrived with at least 45 minutes to spare (90 on separate tickets). Arrives on time: first flight not cancelled × connection made × second flight not cancelled and arriving within 15 minutes. Not yet counted: the second flight also leaving late (which helps), gate-to-gate distance at the hub, and rebooking after a missed connection.

About this data: US DOT on-time records, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, all US airlines; regional flights count under the airline that sells them. Schedules (which flights and connections exist, and their times) are as of Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026; seasonal flights outside that window aren’t ranked. Rebuilt monthly. JSON