ON TIMEBOARD

MCI → SEA on time

Kansas City (Kansas City, MO) to Seattle-Tacoma (Seattle, WA). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
84%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.0%
1,126 flights
Typical arrival
−7 min
median vs schedule
When late
+65 min
average delay
Flights / day
3
3 airlines

84% of flights from Kansas City to Seattle arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is better than the typical U.S. route. The 2 p.m. departures ran on time 91% of the time; the 7 p.m. ones 68%. Most reliable airline: Delta Air Lines (85%). 5% 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 MCI → SEA: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 69% of the time. About 1 in 27 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 94 three hours or more; 1.0% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 1,126 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Alaska Airlines74584%0.7%−7 min3.9%+63 minAlaska Airlines
Delta Air Lines36485%1.7%−8 min3.0%+75 minDelta Air Lines
Southwest Airlines17—————Southwest 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 MCI). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%6 a.m. departures: 89% on time (183 flights)896a7 a.m. departures: 86% on time (469 flights)867a8 a.m. departures: too few flights8a9 a.m. departures: too few flights (1 flights)9a10 a.m. departures: too few flights10a11 a.m. departures: too few flights11anoon departures: too few flights12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights (25 flights)1p2 p.m. departures: 91% on time (238 flights)912p3 p.m. departures: too few flights (96 flights)3p4 p.m. departures: too few flights (1 flights)4p5 p.m. departures: too few flights (1 flights)5p6 p.m. departures: too few flights6p7 p.m. departures: 68% on time (112 flights)687p
MCI → SEA, 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

DepartsAlaska AirlinesDelta Air Lines
6 a.m.90%—
7 a.m.89%85%
2 p.m.91%—
7 p.m.68%—

Last flight of the day

On MCI → SEA, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.4% of the time, against 0.8% for its earlier flights, so here the last flight is actually the safer one. It arrived 3+ hours late 0.0% of the time (earlier flights: 1.6%). 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
Alaska Airlines7:58 p.m.0.4%0.0%0.8%first flight 6:02 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 (88%). Worst: January (73%).

40%70%100%Jan: 73% on time (203 flights)73JanFeb: 85% on time (185 flights)85FebMar: 88% on time (240 flights)88MarApr: 88% on time (265 flights)88AprMay: 86% on time (323 flights)86MayJun: 78% on time (375 flights)78JunJul: 81% on time (385 flights)81JulAug: 81% on time (364 flights)81AugSep: 85% on time (343 flights)85SepOct: 88% on time (268 flights)88OctNov: 87% on time (245 flights)87NovDec: 84% on time (256 flights)84Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday16886%1.2%
Tuesday15384%0.0%
Wednesday15287%0.7%
Thursday16487%0.0%
Friday16376%1.2%
Saturday16284%2.5%
Sunday16482%1.2%

Why flights were late

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

Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 45%Late inbound plane 30%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 21%Severe weather 3%

Cancellations: airline 10 · weather 1

Month by month

60%80%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 84% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2024: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2024: 73% on time, 1.6% cancelledJul 2024: 77% on time, 2.3% cancelledAug 2024: 82% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2024: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2025: 85% on time, 0.9% cancelledJun 2025: 73% on time, 1.6% cancelledJul 2025: 76% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2025: 80% on time, 0.8% cancelledSep 2025: 82% on time, 1.8% cancelledMay 2026: 90% on time, 0.9% cancelledJun 2026: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2026: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2026: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
MCI → SEA, 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
AS 5637:00 a.m.28890%1.0%−8 minAlaska Airlines
DL 21057:00 a.m.36485%1.7%−8 minDelta Air Lines
AS 4182:17 p.m.30882%0.3%−6 minAlaska Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Dec 19, 202530%0
Oct 24, 202530%1
Dec 5, 202530%0
Sep 11, 2025425%0
Sep 8, 2025425%0

Questions

How often are flights from MCI to SEA on time?

84% of 1,126 scheduled flights from Kansas City, MO to Seattle, WA arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 1.0% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly MCI to SEA?

Flights scheduled to leave at 2 p.m. were the most reliable (91% on time). The 7 p.m. departures were the least (68%).

Which airline is most on time from MCI to SEA?

Delta Air Lines: 85% of its 364 flights on the route arrived on time. Alaska Airlines: 84%.

What month has the most delays from MCI to SEA?

January (73% on time). The best month is October (88%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from MCI to SEA more likely to be cancelled?

No, the opposite. Each airline's last MCI–SEA flight of the day was cancelled 0.4% of the time over the past year, against 0.8% 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.