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Madrid Barajas flight delays: the record, day by day

Eurocontrol attributes air-traffic delay to Madrid Barajas on the days it happens, with the cause. On its 25 worst days since 2019 the airport lost 140,489 minutes of arrival delay, mostly to weather and aerodrome capacity. Days with nothing logged are a strong point for any passenger whose flight was late for another reason.

Was your Madrid Barajas flight 3 hours late?

The day the flight was due to leave, in local time where it left. For an overnight flight, that is the evening you set off.

Same flight number twice that day? Add the departure code

Free. No account. The airline is not contacted.

Worst days on record

DateDelay minLateCause
14 December 201910,768131Weather
11 November 20248,034152Aerodrome capacity
3 January 20207,863146Weather
10 December 20197,663150Weather
26 August 20197,294143Weather
13 November 20246,377134Aerodrome capacity
9 November 20246,19888Weather
11 December 20195,695106Weather
1 March 20195,481149Aerodrome capacity
20 September 20195,37785Weather
1 February 20265,195124Weather
26 December 20235,180114Weather
17 September 20194,782131Weather
8 July 20194,752110Weather
29 October 20244,749118Weather

Most recent days with delay logged

DateDelay minLateCause
30 September 2026683ATC capacity
28 September 20262557ATC capacity
26 September 20262365ATC capacity
25 September 202631810Aerodrome capacity
24 September 20262186ATC capacity
22 September 20262557ATC capacity
19 September 20261,02730Aerodrome capacity
18 September 2026652ATC capacity
17 September 20261916Environmental issues
10 September 2026994Environmental issues
8 September 2026541Environmental issues
6 September 2026873Weather
5 September 2026330Aerodrome capacity
3 September 2026783ATC capacity
2 September 20261653ATC capacity

Data to 30 September 2026. Eurocontrol publishes about a month in arrears.

What usually goes wrong at Madrid Barajas

Weather73%
Aerodrome capacity20%
ATC capacity4%
Special event3%

Share of logged delay minutes across the worst and most recent days shown above. Weather, ATC staffing, ATC capacity and equipment failures are the causes airlines most often plead as extraordinary; airport capacity and unspecified delay are arguable.

Questions

Is a delay at Madrid Barajas caused by weather always an extraordinary circumstance?

No. The airline must show that the weather actually affected your flight and that it took all reasonable measures. Eurocontrol logs weather delay at Madrid Barajas on specific days; if your day is not one of them, the weather defence has nothing behind it. If it is, the airline still has to connect it to your flight.

How do I find out if my Madrid Barajas flight was delayed 3 hours?

Enter the flight number and date in the checker above. It pulls the recorded arrival time, works out the delay against the schedule, and shows what Eurocontrol and the airport weather logged for Madrid Barajas that day.

Which airlines' passengers can claim after a Madrid Barajas delay?

Any airline departing Madrid Barajas is covered by EU261 regardless of nationality. Arrivals are covered when the airline is a UK or EU carrier.

Source: Eurocontrol Performance Review Unit, airport arrival ATFM delay by cause, daily. See also your rights and the compensation calculator.