ON TIMEBOARD

DEN → RNO on time

Denver (Denver, CO) to Reno Tahoe (Reno, NV). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
74%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.3%
2,439 flights
Typical arrival
−3 min
median vs schedule
When late
+60 min
average delay
Flights / day
7
3 airlines

74% of flights from Denver to Reno arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is worse than the typical U.S. route. The 8 a.m. departures ran on time 91% of the time; the 8 p.m. ones 59%. Most reliable airline: United Airlines (77%). 8% 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 DEN → RNO: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 57% of the time. About 1 in 13 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 81 three hours or more; 0.3% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 2,439 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
United Airlines1,31877%0.1%−5 min7.7%+67 minUnited Airlines 98%, SkyWest 2%
Southwest Airlines1,08070%0.6%+1 min8.2%+53 minSouthwest Airlines
Frontier Airlines41—————Frontier 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 DEN). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%7 a.m. departures: 86% on time (115 flights)867a8 a.m. departures: 91% on time (275 flights)918a9 a.m. departures: too few flights (79 flights)9a10 a.m. departures: too few flights10a11 a.m. departures: 85% on time (364 flights)8511anoon departures: too few flights (4 flights)12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights (61 flights)1p2 p.m. departures: too few flights (70 flights)2p3 p.m. departures: 67% on time (238 flights)673p4 p.m. departures: 80% on time (321 flights)804p5 p.m. departures: too few flights (42 flights)5p6 p.m. departures: too few flights (10 flights)6p7 p.m. departures: 66% on time (386 flights)667p8 p.m. departures: 59% on time (198 flights)598p9 p.m. departures: 59% on time (219 flights)599p10 p.m. departures: too few flights (57 flights)10p
DEN → RNO, 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

By airline and hour

DepartsUnited AirlinesSouthwest Airlines
7 a.m.—86%
8 a.m.—91%
11 a.m.85%—
3 p.m.—60%
4 p.m.84%—
7 p.m.66%—
8 p.m.—58%
9 p.m.64%—

Last flight of the day

On DEN → RNO, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.4% of the time, against 0.3% for its earlier flights (1.4× as often). It arrived 3+ hours late 1.4% of the time (earlier flights: 1.2%). 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
United Airlines9:00 p.m.0.0%2.5%0.2%first flight 11:20 a.m.
Southwest Airlines8:50 p.m.0.8%0.3%0.4%first flight 8:10 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.

If you need to be in RNO tonight, book an earlier flight so there's a backup if it's cancelled.

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: November (85%). Worst: June (64%).

40%70%100%Jan: 78% on time (578 flights)78JanFeb: 71% on time (535 flights)71FebMar: 77% on time (617 flights)77MarApr: 81% on time (579 flights)81AprMay: 69% on time (626 flights)69MayJun: 64% on time (668 flights)64JunJul: 65% on time (685 flights)65JulAug: 64% on time (718 flights)64AugSep: 82% on time (692 flights)82SepOct: 84% on time (648 flights)84OctNov: 85% on time (554 flights)85NovDec: 81% on time (594 flights)81Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday36876%0.0%
Tuesday32278%0.3%
Wednesday34577%0.3%
Thursday35370%0.0%
Friday36773%0.8%
Saturday32175%0.3%
Sunday36371%0.5%

Why flights were late

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

Late inbound plane 58%Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 32%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 9%Severe weather 1%

Cancellations: airline 4 · weather 2 · air traffic/airport 2

Month by month

50%75%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 80% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2023: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2023: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 73% on time, 1.6% cancelledFeb 2024: 66% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2024: 79% on time, 1.0% cancelledApr 2024: 81% on time, 0.6% cancelledMay 2024: 69% on time, 1.0% cancelledJun 2024: 66% on time, 0.9% cancelledJul 2024: 70% on time, 2.7% cancelledAug 2024: 66% on time, 0.9% cancelledSep 2024: 86% on time, 0.4% cancelledOct 2024: 88% on time, 0.5% cancelledNov 2024: 80% on time, 1.0% cancelledDec 2024: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2025: 75% on time, 0.0% cancelledFeb 2025: 68% on time, 2.8% cancelledMar 2025: 76% on time, 0.4% cancelledApr 2025: 83% on time, 0.4% cancelledMay 2025: 73% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2025: 66% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2025: 59% on time, 0.8% cancelledAug 2025: 66% on time, 0.4% cancelledSep 2025: 79% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2025: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 87% on time, 0.5% cancelledDec 2025: 75% on time, 0.5% cancelledJan 2026: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledFeb 2026: 80% on time, 0.6% cancelledMar 2026: 74% on time, 0.5% cancelledApr 2026: 78% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2026: 65% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2026: 59% on time, 0.5% cancelledJul 2026: 67% on time, 0.5% cancelledAug 2026: 60% on time, 0.9% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
DEN → RNO, 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
UA 216711:15 a.m.36485%0.0%−7 minUnited Airlines
UA 16044:10 p.m.36283%0.3%−7 minUnited Airlines
UA 7197:25 p.m.36466%0.3%+2 minUnited Airlines
UA 28529:05 p.m.13766%0.0%−1 minUnited Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Mar 6, 202670%1
Mar 15, 202660%0
May 5, 202660%0
Jun 8, 2026714%0
Jul 22, 2026714%1

Questions

How often are flights from DEN to RNO on time?

74% of 2,439 scheduled flights from Denver, CO to Reno, NV arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 0.3% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly DEN to RNO?

Flights scheduled to leave at 8 a.m. were the most reliable (91% on time). The 8 p.m. departures were the least (59%).

Which airline is most on time from DEN to RNO?

United Airlines: 77% of its 1,318 flights on the route arrived on time. Southwest Airlines: 70%.

What month has the most delays from DEN to RNO?

June (64% on time). The best month is November (85%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from DEN to RNO more likely to be cancelled?

Yes. Each airline's last DEN–RNO flight of the day was cancelled 0.4% of the time over the past year, against 0.3% 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.