75% of flights leaving Jackson (JAC) arrived on time over the past 12 months, right at the national average of 76%. About 18 flights leave JAC on a typical day; 1.7% were cancelled. 74% pushed back from the gate on time, so most of the lateness is already there when the flight leaves the gate.
At a glance
- Best hour to fly: 10 a.m. (86% on time). Worst: 4 p.m. (61%).
- Best month: November (85%). Worst: July (67%).
- Most reliable airline here: Delta Air Lines (83%), vs American Airlines at 67%.
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (39% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: improving (73% → 75%).
How late?
The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for flights leaving JAC: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 46% of the time. About 1 in 11 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 37 three hours or more; 1.7% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early75%
- 15–30 min late6.9%
- 30–60 min late6.4%
- 1–2 hours late4.7%
- 2–3 hours late2.0%
- 3+ hours late2.7%
- Diverted1.1%
- Cancelled1.7%
Share of all 6,708 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of JAC
Time of day matters more at JAC than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 10 a.m. arrived on time 86% of the time; at 4 p.m. it was 61%, a 25-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 77% on time against 85% for the evening bank (5–10 p.m.). Early planes usually start the day at the airport, so they haven't had a chance to pick up delays elsewhere. By evening a late inbound aircraft, a crew running out of duty hours or an afternoon thunderstorm can push one late flight into the next. Cancellations cluster too: 2 p.m. departures were cancelled 2.8% of the time, against 1.7% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at JAC was a 10 a.m. departure in October (88% on time); the least, 2 p.m. in July (48%). If you can only move one thing, move the hour. Departure hour usually shifts the odds more than the month does.
Each cell: on-time rate for that departure hour in that calendar month, 2023–2026. Find your travel month, then look along the row for the greenest hour.
Best and worst months
July is the hardest month at JAC, with 67% of flights on time across 2023–2026; November is the best at 85%. Summer (June–August) runs 11 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Winter costs 9 points against autumn. Cancellations peak in December (2.5% of flights).
Airlines at JAC
United Airlines runs 43% of departures from JAC. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, Delta Air Lines was the most reliable (83% on time) and American Airlines the least (67%), a 16-point difference. On a route where both fly, that difference is worth more than a small fare gap.
| Airline | Departures | On time | Left on time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 2,912 | 74% | 74% | 2.1% | −9 min |
| American Airlines | 1,698 | 67% | 64% | 1.7% | −4 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 1,692 | 83% | 83% | 1.3% | −12 min |
| Alaska Airlines | 406 | 74% | 75% | 1.0% | −8 min |
Why flights are late at JAC
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At JAC, 39% of delay minutes came from late-arriving aircraft: the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Next is the airlines themselves at 32%. That's why the first flight of the morning is the safest bet: it has no earlier flight to inherit a delay from. Of the 114 cancellations, 62% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 20 minutes, longer than at most large U.S. airports. Airlines pad schedules for it, but a long queue on a busy afternoon still eats into the buffer.
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 75% of JAC departures were on time, against 73% in the 12 months before, an improvement of 2 points. The best recent month was November 2025 (87%); the worst, July 2026 (64%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Saturday, Dec 27, 2025, when 33% of 24 scheduled departures were cancelled. Days like that are usually a major storm, a system outage or a holiday peak hitting bad weather. No average predicts them, so on a stormy forecast, check your airline's travel waivers.
| Date | Departures | Cancelled | On time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 27, 2025 | 24 | 33% | 13% |
| Feb 11, 2026 | 13 | 31% | 8% |
| Jan 25, 2026 | 20 | 25% | 60% |
| Feb 18, 2026 | 18 | 22% | 28% |
| Feb 17, 2026 | 16 | 13% | 56% |
| Jun 12, 2026 | 26 | 12% | 73% |
| Dec 18, 2025 | 18 | 11% | 50% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | 18 | 11% | 61% |
| Feb 25, 2026 | 18 | 11% | 50% |
| Feb 23, 2026 | 20 | 10% | 75% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from JAC, each airline's final departure was cancelled 2.0% of the time, against 1.3% for its earlier flights (1.6× as often). Late in the day crews run short on duty hours, aircraft arrive late from elsewhere, and with no later flight to fold passengers into, cancelling is easier for the airline. 3.3% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was American Airlines to Dallas (3.1% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 4:15 p.m. | 3.1% | 6.3% | 64% |
| ORD Chicago | American Airlines | 3:39 p.m. | 1.5% | 6.5% | 54% |
| ORD Chicago | United Airlines | 12:33 p.m. | 2.0% | 3.4% | 74% |
| DEN Denver | United Airlines | 4:23 p.m. | 1.4% | 3.3% | 64% |
| SLC Salt Lake City | Delta Air Lines | 6:05 p.m. | 1.4% | 0.3% | 87% |
Each airline's last scheduled departure of the day on a route, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Riskiest first.
Tips for flying out of JAC
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At JAC the 10 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in July? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Choosing between airlines? Delta Air Lines has the better record here.
- Need to arrive tonight? Don't book the last flight out of JAC; the one before it leaves you a backup.
- Delayed already? Most delays at JAC come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from JAC
Where you're going matters too. From JAC, the most reliable busy route was to Salt Lake City (SLC, 86% on time) and the least reliable to Denver (DEN, 78%). Flights into congested airports inherit their delays: an air traffic program at the destination holds planes on the ground here.
Least reliable first. Routes with at least 365 flights a year.
| To | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DFW Dallas | 749 | 66% | 2.3% | −4 min |
| ORD Chicago | 823 | 68% | 2.1% | −4 min |
| LAX Los Angeles | 681 | 76% | 1.6% | −10 min |
| DEN Denver | 1,631 | 78% | 1.2% | −11 min |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 1,217 | 86% | 1.0% | −12 min |
Flights into JAC
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Jackson Hole, least reliable first. The weakest is from Dallas (61% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| DFW Dallas | 749 | 61% | 1.9% |
| ORD Chicago | 822 | 66% | 1.1% |
| LAX Los Angeles | 681 | 79% | 0.9% |
| DEN Denver | 1,632 | 81% | 1.1% |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 1,219 | 85% | 0.8% |
Questions about JAC delays
What is the best time to fly out of JAC?
Flights scheduled at 10 a.m.: over the past year 86% of JAC departures at that hour arrived on time, against 61% at 4 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at JAC?
July (67% on time). November is the best month (85%).
Which airline is most on time at JAC?
Delta Air Lines: 83% of its JAC departures arrived on time over the past year. American Airlines had the weakest record at 67%.
Why are flights delayed at JAC?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (39% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the airlines themselves (32%).
How often are flights cancelled at JAC?
1.7% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in December at 2.5%.
Hours are scheduled local departure times. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes late at the destination; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Method.