Airlines › Delta Air Lines
Reporting carrier · 12 months to July 2026
Delta Air Lines: on-time performance
BTS: A flight is counted as on time if it arrived less than 15 minutes after its scheduled time. Only carriers with at least 0.5 percent of domestic scheduled passenger revenue report. Data through July 2026.
In the 12 months to July 2026, Delta Air Lines (BTS code DL) reported 1,038,644 scheduled domestic flights across 1,190 routes and 153 airports.
79.9% of its flights arrived on time, 3.9 points above the 76.0% recorded for all reporting carriers together. 1.7% were cancelled (all carriers: 1.8%) and 0.3% diverted; flights that arrived were 3.9 min late on average.
Its busiest airports by departures are Atlanta (ATL, 23% of departures), Minneapolis (MSP, 6% of departures) and Detroit (DTW, 6% of departures).
The on-time share is down 0.7 points on the previous 12 months (80.6%); the cancellation share moved from 0.8% to 1.7%.
Of the delay minutes that carriers assigned to a BTS cause category on its flights, air carrier 45%, late-arriving aircraft 30% and national aviation system 22%.
- On time 79.9%
- Arrived 15+ minutes late 18.1%
- Cancelled 1.7%
- Diverted 0.3%
Against all reporting carriers
| Measure | Delta Air Lines | All reporting carriers | DL, previous 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrived on time | 79.9% | 76.0% | 80.6% |
| Departed on time | 80.6% | 76.1% | 80.9% |
| Arrived 15+ minutes late | 18.1% | 21.9% | 18.3% |
| Cancelled | 1.7% | 1.8% | 0.8% |
| Diverted | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Average arrival delay | 3.9 min | 8.1 min | 4.3 min |
| Arrival delay minutes per 100 flights | 1,372 | 1,684 | 1,394 |
| Scheduled flights | 1,038,644 | 7,043,858 | 1,019,783 |
By on-time share, Delta Air Lines is 1 of 13 reporting carriers in the 12 months to July 2026; the full table is on the airline on-time ranking. Year on year: −0.7 pts on time.
Month by month
Busiest airports
| Airport | Departures | Share of carrier | On time | Avg arrival delay | Cancelled | Airport, all carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL Atlanta | 240,720 | 23.2% | 78.3% | 5.6 min | 1.7% | 76.6% |
| MSP Minneapolis | 64,787 | 6.2% | 78.5% | 4.2 min | 1.2% | 78.1% |
| DTW Detroit | 60,323 | 5.8% | 76.7% | 6.8 min | 1.4% | 75.4% |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 54,665 | 5.3% | 82.9% | 1.4 min | 0.8% | 83.8% |
| LAX Los Angeles | 37,433 | 3.6% | 80.2% | 3.6 min | 1.1% | 79.0% |
| SEA Seattle | 32,324 | 3.1% | 79.9% | 3.6 min | 1.1% | 78.6% |
| JFK New York | 30,695 | 3% | 75.5% | 3.8 min | 2.8% | 72.8% |
| LGA New York | 29,623 | 2.9% | 71.7% | 8.7 min | 4.1% | 69.9% |
| BOS Boston | 26,458 | 2.5% | 75.1% | 7.7 min | 2.1% | 73.3% |
| MCO Orlando | 21,501 | 2.1% | 76.4% | 9.0 min | 1.9% | 73.0% |
| LAS Las Vegas | 15,657 | 1.5% | 84.1% | 0.6 min | 1.1% | 76.8% |
| TPA Tampa | 14,011 | 1.3% | 79.4% | 5.5 min | 1.7% | 76.9% |
| SFO San Francisco | 13,902 | 1.3% | 76.2% | 6.1 min | 1.3% | 75.6% |
| AUS Austin | 13,127 | 1.3% | 80.9% | 4.9 min | 1.5% | 75.5% |
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | 12,922 | 1.2% | 75.2% | 8.8 min | 2.2% | 68.9% |
| RDU Raleigh/Durham | 11,970 | 1.2% | 83.2% | 1.8 min | 1.8% | 77.1% |
| DFW Dallas/Fort Worth | 11,691 | 1.1% | 78.6% | 7.8 min | 2.6% | 69.9% |
| MIA Miami | 11,640 | 1.1% | 72.6% | 12.0 min | 2.2% | 72.3% |
| DEN Denver | 11,542 | 1.1% | 82.2% | 1.5 min | 1.3% | 76.1% |
| PHX Phoenix | 10,647 | 1% | 85.5% | 0.6 min | 1.1% | 77.4% |
| ORD Chicago | 10,620 | 1% | 70.9% | 15.1 min | 3.0% | 69.4% |
| SAN San Diego | 9,564 | 0.9% | 85.6% | 0.2 min | 1.1% | 76.1% |
| DCA Washington | 9,539 | 0.9% | 76.5% | 8.5 min | 2.5% | 70.1% |
| BNA Nashville | 9,357 | 0.9% | 82.7% | 2.0 min | 1.9% | 74.4% |
| IAH Houston | 8,388 | 0.8% | 79.0% | 7.0 min | 1.9% | 77.6% |
The 25 airports with the most DL departures of 153 served. On time means the flight reached its destination less than 15 minutes late; the pill is green when the carrier is at or above the figure for all carriers' departures from that airport (last column).
Busiest routes
| Route | Cities | Flights | On time | Avg arrival delay | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL–MCO | Atlanta to Orlando | 5,480 | 69.7% | 15.4 min | 1.2% |
| MCO–ATL | Orlando to Atlanta | 5,478 | 77.7% | 8.9 min | 1.2% |
| ATL–LGA | Atlanta to New York | 4,935 | 73.6% | 7.9 min | 3.2% |
| LGA–ATL | New York to Atlanta | 4,932 | 77.2% | 3.4 min | 3.3% |
| ATL–TPA | Atlanta to Tampa | 4,401 | 74.1% | 10.0 min | 1.2% |
| TPA–ATL | Tampa to Atlanta | 4,401 | 80.5% | 4.6 min | 1.4% |
| ATL–FLL | Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale | 4,315 | 72.7% | 10.1 min | 1.7% |
| FLL–ATL | Fort Lauderdale to Atlanta | 4,311 | 77.3% | 6.2 min | 1.9% |
| ATL–LAX | Atlanta to Los Angeles | 3,844 | 78.5% | 3.8 min | 0.8% |
| ATL–DCA | Atlanta to Washington | 3,842 | 65.9% | 15.7 min | 2.4% |
| DCA–ATL | Washington to Atlanta | 3,842 | 78.4% | 5.3 min | 2.6% |
| LAX–ATL | Los Angeles to Atlanta | 3,840 | 80.1% | 5.7 min | 0.9% |
| JAX–ATL | Jacksonville to Atlanta | 3,837 | 85.0% | 1.2 min | 1.6% |
| ATL–JAX | Atlanta to Jacksonville | 3,836 | 75.8% | 8.3 min | 1.6% |
| RDU–ATL | Raleigh/Durham to Atlanta | 3,802 | 87.3% | -1.3 min | 1.5% |
| ATL–RDU | Atlanta to Raleigh/Durham | 3,801 | 81.6% | 4.3 min | 1.3% |
| DTW–ATL | Detroit to Atlanta | 3,742 | 80.7% | 5.2 min | 0.5% |
| ATL–DTW | Atlanta to Detroit | 3,737 | 78.1% | 7.5 min | 0.5% |
| ATL–PBI | Atlanta to West Palm Beach/Palm Beach | 3,710 | 75.1% | 7.6 min | 1.5% |
| PBI–ATL | West Palm Beach/Palm Beach to Atlanta | 3,710 | 82.1% | 1.1 min | 1.6% |
| ATL–BOS | Atlanta to Boston | 3,693 | 74.3% | 8.1 min | 1.8% |
| BOS–ATL | Boston to Atlanta | 3,688 | 79.9% | 3.7 min | 1.8% |
| ATL–BNA | Atlanta to Nashville | 3,369 | 79.5% | 5.2 min | 2.0% |
| BNA–ATL | Nashville to Atlanta | 3,368 | 84.6% | -1.3 min | 2.1% |
| JFK–LAX | New York to Los Angeles | 3,364 | 75.6% | 4.1 min | 2.2% |
The 25 routes with the most DL flights of 1,190 flown. Figures are for this carrier's flights only; the route pages compare every carrier on the route.
By scheduled departure hour
Delay causes and cancellations
Cancellations by reported reason (17,789 in the period): air carrier 59%, weather 37%, national aviation system 4%, security 0%.
Questions and answers
What is Delta Air Lines's on-time performance?
79.9% of 1,038,644 scheduled domestic flights in the 12 months to July 2026 arrived less than 15 minutes late. All reporting carriers together recorded 76.0%.
How often does Delta Air Lines cancel flights?
1.7% of its scheduled domestic flights were cancelled in the period, against 1.8% for all reporting carriers.
What causes Delta Air Lines delays?
For flights that arrived 15 or more minutes late, the carrier attributed the delay minutes as follows: air carrier 45%, late-arriving aircraft 30%, national aviation system 22%, extreme weather 4%, security 0%. Carriers assign these categories themselves under BTS rules.
At which airports does Delta Air Lines have its highest on-time share?
Among its 25 busiest airports with at least 600 departures, flights leaving San Diego (SAN) had the highest on-time arrival share at 85.6%, and those leaving Chicago (ORD) the lowest at 70.9%.
What time of day has the highest on-time share?
Its flights scheduled to depart from 5 am to 6 am local time arrived on time 90.9% of the time; those scheduled from 7 pm to 8 pm did so 70.6% of the time.
Is it getting better?
The on-time share for the 12 months to July 2026 was 79.9%, down 0.7 points on the previous 12 months (80.6%).
Why are some airlines missing?
Only carriers with at least 0.5 percent of domestic scheduled passenger revenue must report on-time data to BTS. Smaller carriers, charter operators and foreign airlines are not in the files, and flights to or from other countries are not covered.
Provenance
Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987 to present), monthly files August 2023 to July 2026; carrier name from the BTS unique carrier lookup. US government works in the public domain. The carrier code is the BTS reporting-carrier code, which identifies the company that operated the flight, not the brand it was sold under. Totals and averages only. See the methodology and which airlines report.