80% of flights leaving Oklahoma City (OKC) arrived on time over the past 12 months, 4 points better than the national average of 76%. That ranks 16 of 76 large U.S. airports. About 70 flights leave OKC on a typical day; 1.7% were cancelled. 81% 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. (91% on time). Worst: 8 p.m. (69%).
- Best month: September (85%). Worst: June (74%).
- Most reliable airline here: Delta Air Lines (87%), vs American Airlines at 76%.
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (38% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: about the same (80% → 80%).
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 OKC: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 53% of the time. About 1 in 15 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 65 three hours or more; 1.7% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early80%
- 15–30 min late6.5%
- 30–60 min late4.7%
- 1–2 hours late3.6%
- 2–3 hours late1.4%
- 3+ hours late1.5%
- Diverted0.3%
- Cancelled1.7%
Share of all 25,640 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of OKC
Time of day matters more at OKC than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 5 a.m. arrived on time 91% of the time; at 8 p.m. it was 69%, a 22-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 88% on time against 71% 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: 4 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 OKC was a 5 a.m. departure in September (95% on time); the least, 4 p.m. in July (55%). 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
June is the hardest month at OKC, with 74% of flights on time across 2023–2026; September is the best at 85%. Summer (June–August) runs 8 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Cancellations peak in January (4.7% of flights).
Airlines at OKC
American Airlines runs 32% of departures from OKC. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, Delta Air Lines was the most reliable (87% on time) and American Airlines the least (76%), a 10-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 | 8,311 | 76% | 78% | 2.7% | −9 min |
| Southwest Airlines | 7,274 | 80% | 78% | 0.8% | −6 min |
| United Airlines | 5,546 | 82% | 86% | 1.2% | −9 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 3,358 | 87% | 86% | 1.9% | −14 min |
| Frontier Airlines | 586 | 74% | 76% | 1.2% | −12 min |
| Alaska Airlines | 424 | 88% | 86% | 0.2% | −8 min |
| Allegiant Air | 141 | 63% | 67% | 1.4% | −4 min |
Why flights are late at OKC
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At OKC, 38% 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 35%. 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 429 cancellations, 71% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 15 minutes, shorter than at most large U.S. airports.
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 80% of OKC departures were on time, against 80% in the 12 months before: essentially unchanged. The best recent month was February 2026 (86%); the worst, July 2026 (76%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Saturday, Jan 24, 2026, when 100% of 46 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 | 46 | 100% | 0% |
| Jan 25, 2026 | 65 | 63% | 15% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | 61 | 23% | 49% |
| Jan 23, 2026 | 61 | 21% | 69% |
| Mar 16, 2026 | 73 | 15% | 40% |
| Mar 7, 2026 | 61 | 15% | 54% |
| Apr 4, 2026 | 62 | 11% | 52% |
| Nov 10, 2025 | 73 | 11% | 53% |
| Jan 27, 2026 | 55 | 11% | 67% |
| Mar 15, 2026 | 72 | 10% | 56% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from OKC, each airline's final departure was cancelled 1.8% of the time, against 1.5% for its earlier flights, about the same. 1.4% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was American Airlines to Chicago (6.9% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD Chicago | American Airlines | 7:09 p.m. | 6.9% | 4.4% | 52% |
| LGA New York | American Airlines | 4:58 p.m. | 4.7% | 2.9% | 66% |
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 8:09 p.m. | 4.1% | 2.7% | 66% |
| ORD Chicago | United Airlines | 5:36 p.m. | 3.0% | 1.9% | 71% |
| ATL Atlanta | Delta Air Lines | 5:12 p.m. | 3.0% | 1.9% | 80% |
| PHX Phoenix | American Airlines | 6:10 p.m. | 1.4% | 1.7% | 79% |
| DEN Denver | United Airlines | 6:46 p.m. | 1.6% | 1.4% | 73% |
| DEN Denver | Southwest Airlines | 7:00 p.m. | 1.1% | 1.4% | 67% |
| CLT Charlotte | American Airlines | 1:51 p.m. | 0.7% | 1.7% | 79% |
| MDW Chicago | Southwest Airlines | 3:30 p.m. | 1.9% | 0.5% | 67% |
| PHX Phoenix | Southwest Airlines | 7:50 p.m. | 1.1% | 0.9% | 71% |
| LAS Las Vegas | Southwest Airlines | 8:10 p.m. | 0.8% | 1.1% | 65% |
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 OKC
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At OKC the 5 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in June? 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.
- Delayed already? Most delays at OKC come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from OKC
Where you're going matters too. From OKC, the most reliable busy route was to Houston (IAH, 85% on time) and the least reliable to Chicago (ORD, 73%). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DCA Washington | 691 | 69% | 4.2% | −4 min |
| ORD Chicago | 2,622 | 73% | 3.0% | −6 min |
| LGA New York | 998 | 76% | 4.8% | −10 min |
| DFW Dallas | 3,158 | 77% | 2.6% | −8 min |
| BNA Nashville | 555 | 79% | 0.5% | −2 min |
| PHX Phoenix | 1,834 | 80% | 0.9% | −7 min |
| DEN Denver | 3,125 | 80% | 1.0% | −6 min |
| LAS Las Vegas | 1,234 | 80% | 0.8% | −7 min |
| HOU Houston | 1,217 | 82% | 0.7% | −9 min |
| MDW Chicago | 573 | 82% | 1.4% | −4 min |
| CLT Charlotte | 815 | 82% | 1.5% | −12 min |
| ATL Atlanta | 1,816 | 84% | 2.6% | −17 min |
| IAH Houston | 2,608 | 85% | 0.8% | −11 min |
| LAX Los Angeles | 930 | 85% | 1.0% | −10 min |
| MSP Minneapolis | 541 | 86% | 0.7% | −9 min |
| SEA Seattle | 424 | 88% | 0.2% | −8 min |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 720 | 92% | 0.6% | −12 min |
Flights into OKC
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into OKC Will Rogers World, least reliable first. The weakest is from Washington (63% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| DCA Washington | 691 | 63% | 3.6% |
| LGA New York | 998 | 65% | 6.5% |
| ORD Chicago | 2,623 | 67% | 3.2% |
| DFW Dallas | 3,158 | 71% | 2.5% |
| MDW Chicago | 572 | 72% | 1.6% |
| BNA Nashville | 555 | 73% | 0.9% |
| LAS Las Vegas | 1,236 | 74% | 0.9% |
| PHX Phoenix | 1,834 | 75% | 0.9% |
| HOU Houston | 1,216 | 75% | 0.9% |
| CLT Charlotte | 815 | 77% | 1.5% |
| DEN Denver | 3,122 | 78% | 0.7% |
| MSP Minneapolis | 540 | 78% | 0.9% |
| ATL Atlanta | 1,816 | 80% | 2.6% |
| IAH Houston | 2,608 | 84% | 1.0% |
| LAX Los Angeles | 929 | 86% | 0.8% |
| SEA Seattle | 424 | 86% | 0.2% |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 720 | 89% | 0.6% |
Questions about OKC delays
What is the best time to fly out of OKC?
Flights scheduled at 5 a.m.: over the past year 91% of OKC departures at that hour arrived on time, against 69% at 8 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at OKC?
June (74% on time). September is the best month (85%).
Which airline is most on time at OKC?
Delta Air Lines: 87% of its OKC departures arrived on time over the past year. American Airlines had the weakest record at 76%.
Why are flights delayed at OKC?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (38% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the airlines themselves (35%).
How often are flights cancelled at OKC?
1.7% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 4.7%.
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.