ON TIMEBOARD

ONT → SEA on time

Ontario (Ontario, CA) to Seattle-Tacoma (Seattle, WA). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
85%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.1%
2,488 flights
Typical arrival
−9 min
median vs schedule
When late
+67 min
average delay
Flights / day
7
3 airlines

85% of flights from Ontario to Seattle arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is better than the typical U.S. route. The 7 a.m. departures ran on time 94% of the time; the 7 p.m. ones 68%. Most reliable airline: Delta Air Lines (91%). 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 ONT → SEA: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 63% of the time. About 1 in 27 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 108 three hours or more; 1.1% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 2,488 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Alaska Airlines1,25881%1.8%−6 min4.2%+54 minAlaska Airlines 100%, SkyWest 0%
Delta Air Lines1,06191%0.3%−12 min2.6%+95 minSkyWest 99%, Delta Air Lines 1%
Frontier Airlines16976%1.8%−11 min5.9%+80 minFrontier 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 ONT). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%6 a.m. departures: 93% on time (593 flights)936a7 a.m. departures: 94% on time (121 flights)947a8 a.m. departures: too few flights (28 flights)8a9 a.m. departures: too few flights (2 flights)9a10 a.m. departures: too few flights (94 flights)10a11 a.m. departures: 90% on time (353 flights)9011anoon departures: 80% on time (184 flights)8012p1 p.m. departures: too few flights (53 flights)1p2 p.m. departures: 83% on time (107 flights)832p3 p.m. departures: 88% on time (138 flights)883p4 p.m. departures: 75% on time (244 flights)754p5 p.m. departures: 82% on time (299 flights)825p6 p.m. departures: too few flights (86 flights)6p7 p.m. departures: 68% on time (137 flights)687p8 p.m. departures: too few flights (4 flights)8p9 p.m. departures: too few flights (43 flights)9p
ONT → 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.92%94%
7 a.m.—94%
11 a.m.—92%
noon80%—
4 p.m.76%—
5 p.m.—88%
7 p.m.68%—

Last flight of the day

On ONT → SEA, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.4% of the time, against 1.4% for its earlier flights, so here the last flight is actually the safer one. It arrived 3+ hours late 1.4% of the time (earlier flights: 0.6%). 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 Airlines7:59 p.m.0.5%1.6%2.2%first flight 6:02 a.m.
Delta Air Lines6:01 p.m.0.3%1.1%0.3%first flight 6:20 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: April (91%). Worst: July (80%).

40%70%100%Jan: 82% on time (472 flights)82JanFeb: 88% on time (421 flights)88FebMar: 87% on time (524 flights)87MarApr: 91% on time (609 flights)91AprMay: 86% on time (763 flights)86MayJun: 83% on time (776 flights)83JunJul: 80% on time (834 flights)80JulAug: 81% on time (783 flights)81AugSep: 86% on time (647 flights)86SepOct: 90% on time (613 flights)90OctNov: 86% on time (635 flights)86NovDec: 83% on time (573 flights)83Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday39182%0.5%
Tuesday33589%0.0%
Wednesday32686%0.6%
Thursday36482%0.8%
Friday38084%2.6%
Saturday30987%1.6%
Sunday38385%1.6%

Why flights were late

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

Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 46%Late inbound plane 37%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 12%Severe weather 5%

Cancellations: airline 18 · air traffic/airport 7 · weather 3

Month by month

60%80%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2023: 92% on time, 0.5% cancelledNov 2023: 83% on time, 0.5% cancelledDec 2023: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 81% on time, 11.9% cancelledFeb 2024: 92% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2024: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2024: 93% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2024: 86% on time, 0.4% cancelledJun 2024: 81% on time, 0.4% cancelledJul 2024: 82% on time, 1.1% cancelledAug 2024: 82% on time, 1.1% cancelledSep 2024: 82% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2024: 94% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2024: 89% on time, 0.9% cancelledDec 2024: 84% on time, 2.0% cancelledJan 2025: 78% on time, 1.8% cancelledFeb 2025: 78% on time, 2.7% cancelledMar 2025: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2025: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2025: 84% on time, 0.8% cancelledJun 2025: 85% on time, 0.4% cancelledJul 2025: 79% on time, 3.0% cancelledAug 2025: 83% on time, 0.8% cancelledSep 2025: 87% on time, 0.5% cancelledOct 2025: 84% on time, 1.0% cancelledNov 2025: 84% on time, 3.3% cancelledDec 2025: 81% on time, 1.0% cancelledJan 2026: 87% on time, 0.6% cancelledFeb 2026: 96% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2026: 86% on time, 1.7% cancelledApr 2026: 91% on time, 0.5% cancelledMay 2026: 88% on time, 0.8% cancelledJun 2026: 83% on time, 1.3% cancelledJul 2026: 80% on time, 1.2% cancelledAug 2026: 78% on time, 1.2% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
ONT → 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 6076:00 a.m.29493%0.7%−10 minAlaska Airlines
DL 407011:59 a.m.17790%0.0%−12 minSkyWest
AS 65412:04 p.m.31084%3.5%−9 minAlaska Airlines
F9 22754:49 p.m.12675%2.4%−11 minFrontier Airlines
DL 40315:50 p.m.32288%0.3%−11 minSkyWest
AS 5949:20 p.m.13766%0.0%0 minAlaska Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Mar 13, 202660%3
Jul 16, 2026911%0
Aug 9, 2026933%1
Dec 31, 2025540%0
Aug 10, 2026944%0

Nearby airport alternatives

Other ways to make the same trip, using airports within 60 miles of Ontario or Seattle. None has been clearly more reliable than ONT → SEA.

RouteFlightsOn timeCancelled
ONT → SEA (this route)2,48885%1.1%
SNA → SEA Orange County John Wayne to Seattle-Tacoma3,94485%1.1%
LAX → SEA Los Angeles LAX to Seattle-Tacoma7,54484%0.8%
BUR → SEA Hollywood Burbank to Seattle-Tacoma1,65382%2.4%

Questions

How often are flights from ONT to SEA on time?

85% of 2,488 scheduled flights from Ontario, CA to Seattle, WA arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 1.1% were cancelled.

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

Flights scheduled to leave at 7 a.m. were the most reliable (94% on time). The 7 p.m. departures were the least (68%).

Which airline is most on time from ONT to SEA?

Delta Air Lines: 91% of its 1,061 flights on the route arrived on time. Alaska Airlines: 81%. Frontier Airlines: 76%.

What month has the most delays from ONT to SEA?

July (80% on time). The best month is April (91%), over 2023–2026.

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

No, the opposite. Each airline's last ONT–SEA flight of the day was cancelled 0.4% of the time over the past year, against 1.4% 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.