83% of flights leaving Lubbock (LBB) arrived on time over the past 12 months, 7 points better than the national average of 76%. About 21 flights leave LBB on a typical day; 1.7% were cancelled. 83% 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: 5 a.m. (93% on time). Worst: 5 p.m. (62%).
- Best month: September (86%). Worst: May (76%).
- Most reliable airline here: Southwest Airlines (84%), vs United Airlines at 79%.
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (40% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: improving (80% → 83%).
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 LBB: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 46% of the time. About 1 in 15 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 54 three hours or more; 1.7% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early83%
- 15–30 min late4.7%
- 30–60 min late4.0%
- 1–2 hours late3.5%
- 2–3 hours late1.4%
- 3+ hours late1.9%
- Diverted0.2%
- Cancelled1.7%
Share of all 7,818 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of LBB
Time of day matters more at LBB than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 5 a.m. arrived on time 93% of the time; at 5 p.m. it was 62%, a 31-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 90% on time against 67% 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: 6 p.m. departures were cancelled 4.3% of the time, against 1.7% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at LBB was a 6 a.m. departure in September (96% on time); the least, 5 p.m. in May (51%). 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
May is the hardest month at LBB, with 76% of flights on time across 2023–2026; September is the best at 86%. Summer (June–August) runs 4 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Cancellations peak in January (5.3% of flights).
Airlines at LBB
American Airlines runs 38% of departures from LBB. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, Southwest Airlines was the most reliable (84% on time) and United Airlines the least (79%), a 5-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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines | 2,985 | 83% | 83% | 2.2% | −12 min |
| Southwest Airlines | 2,694 | 84% | 83% | 1.0% | −10 min |
| United Airlines | 2,139 | 79% | 83% | 1.8% | −10 min |
Why flights are late at LBB
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At LBB, 40% 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 130 cancellations, 78% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 16 minutes, about typical for a large U.S. airport.
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 83% of LBB departures were on time, against 80% in the 12 months before, an improvement of 3 points. The best recent month was August 2026 (88%); the worst, January 2026 (78%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Saturday, Jan 24, 2026, when 100% of 15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | 15 | 100% | 0% |
| Jan 25, 2026 | 22 | 95% | 0% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | 20 | 45% | 15% |
| Jan 23, 2026 | 20 | 30% | 50% |
| Mar 7, 2026 | 17 | 24% | 47% |
| Nov 20, 2025 | 22 | 18% | 45% |
| Mar 16, 2026 | 23 | 17% | 52% |
| Mar 17, 2026 | 22 | 14% | 64% |
| Nov 10, 2025 | 23 | 13% | 70% |
| May 10, 2026 | 23 | 13% | 70% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from LBB, each airline's final departure was cancelled 2.4% of the time, against 1.7% for its earlier flights (1.4× 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. 1.9% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was United Airlines to Denver (1.9% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver | United Airlines | 5:20 p.m. | 1.9% | 4.1% | 56% |
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 8:05 p.m. | 4.4% | 1.4% | 74% |
| IAH Houston | United Airlines | 4:50 p.m. | 2.5% | 1.4% | 80% |
| DAL Dallas | Southwest Airlines | 5:50 p.m. | 1.1% | 1.4% | 72% |
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 LBB
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At LBB the 5 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in May? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Choosing between airlines? Southwest Airlines has the better record here.
- Need to arrive tonight? Don't book the last flight out of LBB; the one before it leaves you a backup.
- Delayed already? Most delays at LBB come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from LBB
Where you're going matters too. From LBB, the most reliable busy route was to Dallas (DAL, 84% on time) and the least reliable to Dallas (DFW, 82%). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver | 983 | 76% | 1.5% | −7 min |
| LAS Las Vegas | 365 | 79% | 1.1% | −8 min |
| DFW Dallas | 2,617 | 82% | 2.5% | −11 min |
| IAH Houston | 1,438 | 84% | 1.9% | −11 min |
| DAL Dallas | 1,494 | 84% | 1.1% | −10 min |
| PHX Phoenix | 366 | 93% | 0.3% | −16 min |
Flights into LBB
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Lubbock Preston Smith, least reliable first. The weakest is from Denver (70% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver | 980 | 70% | 1.6% |
| PHX Phoenix | 367 | 75% | 0.3% |
| DAL Dallas | 1,494 | 76% | 1.3% |
| DFW Dallas | 2,617 | 79% | 2.5% |
| IAH Houston | 1,439 | 84% | 1.7% |
| LAS Las Vegas | 366 | 85% | 1.1% |
Questions about LBB delays
What is the best time to fly out of LBB?
Flights scheduled at 5 a.m.: over the past year 93% of LBB departures at that hour arrived on time, against 62% at 5 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at LBB?
May (76% on time). September is the best month (86%).
Which airline is most on time at LBB?
Southwest Airlines: 84% of its LBB departures arrived on time over the past year. United Airlines had the weakest record at 79%.
Why are flights delayed at LBB?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (40% 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 LBB?
1.7% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 5.3%.
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.