ON TIMEBOARD

CLT → LAX on time

Charlotte Douglas (Charlotte, NC) to Los Angeles LAX (Los Angeles, CA). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
78%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.9%
2,276 flights
Typical arrival
−8 min
median vs schedule
When late
+59 min
average delay
Flights / day
6
1 airline

78% of flights from Charlotte to Los Angeles arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is about the typical U.S. route. The noon departures ran on time 90% of the time; the 7 p.m. ones 62%. 7% of flights arrived more than an hour late or not at all.

How late?

The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for CLT → LAX: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 59% of the time. About 1 in 16 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 134 three hours or more; 0.9% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 2,276 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
American Airlines2,27678%0.9%−8 min6.3%+59 minAmerican Airlines

Airline = the name on the ticket. Regional flights (e.g. "Delta Connection") count under the ticketing airline, and the operator is listed.

Best time of day to fly

On-time rate by scheduled departure hour (local time at CLT). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%7 a.m. departures: 85% on time (283 flights)857a8 a.m. departures: 82% on time (210 flights)828a9 a.m. departures: too few flights (41 flights)9a10 a.m. departures: too few flights (85 flights)10a11 a.m. departures: 87% on time (251 flights)8711anoon departures: 90% on time (108 flights)9012p1 p.m. departures: 80% on time (138 flights)801p2 p.m. departures: 74% on time (257 flights)742p3 p.m. departures: too few flights (47 flights)3p4 p.m. departures: 76% on time (177 flights)764p5 p.m. departures: too few flights (74 flights)5p6 p.m. departures: 66% on time (167 flights)666p7 p.m. departures: 62% on time (134 flights)627p8 p.m. departures: 80% on time (190 flights)808p9 p.m. departures: too few flights (17 flights)9p10 p.m. departures: too few flights (97 flights)10p
CLT → LAX, share of flights arriving on time, by departure hour. Hours with under 100 flights are greyed out.
82%+ on time76–82%68–76%under 68%too few flights

Last flight of the day

On CLT → LAX, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 1.1% of the time, against 0.9% for its earlier flights, about the same. It arrived 3+ hours late 1.1% of the time (earlier flights: 0.7%). It matters more than the numbers suggest. Miss an earlier flight and there's another one that evening; miss the last one and you're usually waiting until morning.

AirlineLast departureLast: cancelledLast: 3h+ lateEarlier: cancelledNext morning
American Airlines7:14 p.m.1.1%1.1%0.9%first flight 7:05 a.m.

Last flight = the airline's last scheduled departure on this route that day, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Times are typical scheduled times over the latest three months.

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: October (86%). Worst: July (61%).

40%70%100%Jan: 75% on time (612 flights)75JanFeb: 77% on time (557 flights)77FebMar: 82% on time (633 flights)82MarApr: 75% on time (623 flights)75AprMay: 65% on time (659 flights)65MayJun: 67% on time (722 flights)67JunJul: 61% on time (738 flights)61JulAug: 75% on time (675 flights)75AugSep: 81% on time (638 flights)81SepOct: 86% on time (705 flights)86OctNov: 81% on time (657 flights)81NovDec: 80% on time (664 flights)80Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday33174%0.9%
Tuesday31182%0.6%
Wednesday31380%0.6%
Thursday33180%0.0%
Friday33081%0.0%
Saturday32176%1.6%
Sunday33974%2.6%

Why flights were late

Share of delay minutes on flights 15+ minutes late, as reported to BTS by the airlines.

Late inbound plane 41%Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 34%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 17%Severe weather 8%Security 1%

Cancellations: weather 18 · airline 2 · air traffic/airport 1

Month by month

30%65%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 77% on time, 0.5% cancelledOct 2023: 79% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2023: 80% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 75% on time, 0.4% cancelledFeb 2024: 79% on time, 0.4% cancelledMar 2024: 80% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2024: 72% on time, 0.4% cancelledMay 2024: 44% on time, 0.8% cancelledJun 2024: 63% on time, 2.6% cancelledJul 2024: 51% on time, 6.6% cancelledAug 2024: 69% on time, 2.9% cancelledSep 2024: 83% on time, 1.9% cancelledOct 2024: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2024: 80% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2024: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2025: 78% on time, 1.9% cancelledFeb 2025: 79% on time, 0.6% cancelledMar 2025: 81% on time, 0.5% cancelledApr 2025: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2025: 79% on time, 0.5% cancelledJun 2025: 66% on time, 0.8% cancelledJul 2025: 63% on time, 0.8% cancelledAug 2025: 79% on time, 0.5% cancelledSep 2025: 82% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2025: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 82% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2025: 79% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2026: 70% on time, 8.6% cancelledFeb 2026: 72% on time, 2.0% cancelledMar 2026: 85% on time, 1.1% cancelledApr 2026: 79% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2026: 76% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2026: 74% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2026: 71% on time, 0.9% cancelledAug 2026: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
CLT → LAX, monthly on-time and cancellation rate.

Flight numbers on this route

Regular flights with at least 120 scheduled trips in the past year. Sorted by departure time.

FlightDepartsFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrivalOperated by
AA 19958:57 a.m.16585%0.6%−12 minAmerican Airlines
AA 198811:22 a.m.12989%0.0%−11 minAmerican Airlines
AA 3521:20 p.m.13880%0.0%−3 minAmerican Airlines
AA 15022:33 p.m.13672%0.0%−3 minAmerican Airlines
AA 20557:00 p.m.16367%0.0%−3 minAmerican Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Feb 20, 202660%0
Sep 24, 202560%0
Feb 1, 202650%3
Jan 31, 202650%4
Jan 25, 202650%4

Questions

How often are flights from CLT to LAX on time?

78% of 2,276 scheduled flights from Charlotte, NC to Los Angeles, CA arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 0.9% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly CLT to LAX?

Flights scheduled to leave at noon were the most reliable (90% on time). The 7 p.m. departures were the least (62%).

What month has the most delays from CLT to LAX?

July (61% on time). The best month is October (86%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from CLT to LAX more likely to be cancelled?

Not much. Each airline's last CLT–LAX flight of the day was cancelled 1.1% of the time over the past year, against 0.9% for its earlier flights. If the last flight is cancelled, the next one is usually the following morning.

Related

Domestic flights by the airlines that report to the U.S. DOT, plus their regional partners. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes after schedule; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Past performance is a guide, not a forecast. Method.