ON TIMEBOARD

STL → BNA on time

St. Louis Lambert (St. Louis, MO) to Nashville (Nashville, TN). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
81%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.6%
1,282 flights
Typical arrival
−5 min
median vs schedule
When late
+52 min
average delay
Flights / day
4
1 airline

81% of flights from St. Louis to Nashville arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is about the typical U.S. route. The 7 a.m. departures ran on time 94% of the time; the 6 p.m. ones 62%. 6% 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 STL → BNA: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 61% of the time. About 1 in 19 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 321 three hours or more; 0.6% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 1,282 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Southwest Airlines1,28281%0.6%−5 min5.3%+52 minSouthwest 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 STL). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%6 a.m. departures: too few flights (68 flights)6a7 a.m. departures: 94% on time (128 flights)947a8 a.m. departures: 90% on time (117 flights)908a9 a.m. departures: too few flights (45 flights)9a10 a.m. departures: too few flights (81 flights)10a11 a.m. departures: 88% on time (131 flights)8811anoon departures: too few flights (63 flights)12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights (52 flights)1p2 p.m. departures: 75% on time (142 flights)752p3 p.m. departures: too few flights (51 flights)3p4 p.m. departures: too few flights (50 flights)4p5 p.m. departures: 72% on time (115 flights)725p6 p.m. departures: 62% on time (125 flights)626p7 p.m. departures: too few flights (46 flights)7p8 p.m. departures: too few flights (46 flights)8p
STL → BNA, 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 STL → BNA, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.5% of the time, against 0.7% for its earlier flights, about the same. It arrived 3+ hours late 0.0% of the time (earlier flights: 0.4%). 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
Southwest Airlines6:15 p.m.0.5%0.0%0.7%first flight 10:15 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: November (90%). Worst: July (72%).

40%70%100%Jan: 80% on time (293 flights)80JanFeb: 88% on time (271 flights)88FebMar: 80% on time (318 flights)80MarApr: 84% on time (330 flights)84AprMay: 75% on time (346 flights)75MayJun: 79% on time (307 flights)79JunJul: 72% on time (311 flights)72JulAug: 87% on time (326 flights)87AugSep: 89% on time (312 flights)89SepOct: 87% on time (365 flights)87OctNov: 90% on time (319 flights)90NovDec: 82% on time (315 flights)82Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday20474%1.0%
Tuesday19383%0.0%
Wednesday18983%0.0%
Thursday19981%0.5%
Friday20381%0.5%
Saturday11885%1.7%
Sunday17679%1.1%

Why flights were late

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

Late inbound plane 57%Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 26%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 14%Severe weather 3%

Cancellations: weather 5 · airline 2 · air traffic/airport 1

Month by month

60%80%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Oct 2023: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2023: 91% on time, 0.9% cancelledDec 2023: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 78% on time, 7.5% cancelledMar 2024: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2024: 75% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2024: 95% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2024: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2024: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2024: 93% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2025: 79% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2025: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2025: 73% on time, 0.8% cancelledJun 2025: 75% on time, 1.0% cancelledJul 2025: 72% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2025: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2025: 93% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2025: 84% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2025: 78% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2026: 75% on time, 2.7% cancelledApr 2026: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2026: 78% on time, 0.9% cancelledJun 2026: 72% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2026: 69% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2026: 75% on time, 0.0% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
STL → BNA, monthly on-time and cancellation rate.

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Jan 25, 202640%1
May 18, 202640%1
Aug 21, 2026425%0
May 7, 2026425%0
Mar 11, 2026425%0

Questions

How often are flights from STL to BNA on time?

81% of 1,282 scheduled flights from St. Louis, MO to Nashville, TN arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 0.6% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly STL to BNA?

Flights scheduled to leave at 7 a.m. were the most reliable (94% on time). The 6 p.m. departures were the least (62%).

What month has the most delays from STL to BNA?

July (72% on time). The best month is November (90%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from STL to BNA more likely to be cancelled?

Not much. Each airline's last STL–BNA flight of the day was cancelled 0.5% of the time over the past year, against 0.7% 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.