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Airport · 12 months to July 2026
Ellison Onizuka Kona International at Keahole: delays and on-time record
Kona, Hawaii
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; this is a monthly history, not live airport status.
Ellison Onizuka Kona International at Keahole (KOA) in Kona, Hawaii had 16,052 scheduled domestic departures by reporting carriers in the 12 months to July 2026, about 44 a day, on 17 routes.
85.7% of those flights left the gate less than 15 minutes late, 9.6 points above the national departure figure of 76.1%. Flights arriving at KOA were on time 82.7% of the time, 6.7 points above the national arrival figure of 76.0%.
1.1% of scheduled departures were cancelled (national: 1.8%), and the average departure delay, counting early and on-time departures as zero, was 8.7 min.
Alaska Airlines is the largest reporting carrier at KOA with 42% of departures. Among carriers with at least 161 departures, Southwest Airlines had the highest on-time arrival share for its KOA departures (93.8%) and Alaska Airlines the lowest (78.5%).
On-time departures are down 3.2 points on the previous 12 months (88.9%).
Of the delay minutes that carriers assigned to a BTS cause category for flights leaving KOA, late-arriving aircraft 49%, air carrier 34% and national aviation system 13%.
- On time 84.7%
- Arrived 15+ minutes late 14.1%
- Cancelled 1.1%
- Diverted 0.1%
As origin and as destination, against the nation
| Measure | Departures from KOA | Arrivals at KOA | All reported flights | KOA departures, previous 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Departed on time (less than 15 min late) | 85.7% | 84.6% | 76.1% | 88.9% |
| Arrived on time | 84.7% | 82.7% | 76.0% | 88.1% |
| Cancelled | 1.1% | 0.8% | 1.8% | 0.8% |
| Diverted | 0.1% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.1% |
| Average departure delay (late minutes only) | 8.7 min | 8.5 min | 17.4 min | 8.4 min |
| Arrival delay minutes per 100 flights | 889 | 905 | 1,684 | 854 |
| Scheduled flights | 16,052 | 16,051 | 7,043,858 | 16,098 |
12 months to July 2026. The first column follows flights that left KOA; the second follows flights that landed there. Year on year, on-time departures moved −3.2 pts.
Airlines at KOA
| Reporting carrier | Flights | Share | On time | Avg arrival delay | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AS Alaska Airlines | 6,768 | 42% | 78.5% | 5.8 min | 1.3% |
| HA Hawaiian Airlines | 2,913 | 18% | 87.0% | 3.2 min | 0.7% |
| WN Southwest Airlines | 2,888 | 18% | 93.8% | -8.3 min | 0.7% |
| UA United Airlines | 1,801 | 11% | 88.1% | -6.2 min | 1.1% |
| AA American Airlines | 856 | 5% | 86.9% | 0.4 min | 1.2% |
| DL Delta Air Lines | 826 | 5% | 85.7% | -6.9 min | 2.9% |
Departures from KOA by reporting carrier, ordered by flights; on time means the flight reached its destination less than 15 minutes late. Green is at or above the airport's overall share of 84.7%. Carriers fly different routes at different hours, so the rows are not a like-for-like test.
Busiest routes from KOA
| Route | Cities | Flights | On time | Avg arrival delay | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KOA–HNL | Kona to Honolulu | 7,236 | 83.8% | 3.8 min | 1.2% |
| KOA–LAX | Kona to Los Angeles | 1,607 | 85.7% | -2.2 min | 1.2% |
| KOA–OGG | Kona to Kahului | 1,460 | 87.1% | 2.3 min | 0.2% |
| KOA–SEA | Kona to Seattle | 1,422 | 85.2% | -6.0 min | 2.2% |
| KOA–SFO | Kona to San Francisco | 1,150 | 83.0% | -0.9 min | 1.0% |
| KOA–SMF | Kona to Sacramento | 521 | 89.4% | -4.1 min | 0.0% |
| KOA–PHX | Kona to Phoenix | 384 | 93.0% | -4.0 min | 1.0% |
| KOA–DEN | Kona to Denver | 370 | 89.5% | -11.0 min | 1.4% |
| KOA–LAS | Kona to Las Vegas | 365 | 95.1% | -18.8 min | 0.3% |
| KOA–LIH | Kona to Lihue | 365 | 92.6% | 0.4 min | 0.5% |
| KOA–PDX | Kona to Portland | 365 | 80.8% | -0.9 min | 0.0% |
| KOA–SAN | Kona to San Diego | 364 | 73.4% | 4.7 min | 0.5% |
| KOA–SJC | Kona to San Jose | 154 | 74.0% | 13.6 min | 0.0% |
| KOA–DFW | Kona to Dallas/Fort Worth | 122 | 79.5% | 2.4 min | 2.5% |
The 14 busiest of 17 routes with reported flights. Routes with at least 10 flights a month have their own page.
Month by month
By scheduled departure hour
Among hours with at least 321 departures, 6 am to 7 am had the highest on-time share (94.9% of 671 flights) and 2 pm to 3 pm the lowest (75.4% of 1,009).
Delay causes
Cancellations by reported reason (180 in the period): air carrier 58%, weather 24%, national aviation system 17%, security 0%.
Checkpoint volumes
TSA publishes daily checkpoint passenger counts for the country as a whole, not for KOA on its own. The national series through September 2026 is on the checkpoint volumes page.
Questions and answers
How often do flights leave KOA on time?
85.7% of the 16,052 scheduled domestic departures in the 12 months to July 2026 left less than 15 minutes late; the national figure was 76.1%. 1.1% were cancelled.
How often do flights arrive at KOA on time?
82.7% of 16,051 scheduled arrivals were on time by the BTS definition, against 76.0% nationally.
Which airline has the highest on-time share at KOA?
Counting departures from KOA and whether they reached their destination on time, Southwest Airlines had the highest share (93.8% of 2,888 flights), then United Airlines (88.1%) and Hawaiian Airlines (87.0%). Carriers fly different routes at different hours, so the figures are not a like-for-like test.
What causes delays at KOA?
For departures from KOA that reached their destination 15 or more minutes late, carriers attributed the delay minutes as follows: late-arriving aircraft 49%, air carrier 34%, national aviation system 13%, extreme weather 5%, security 0%.
What time of day has the highest on-time share at KOA?
Departures scheduled from 6 am to 7 am local time left on time 94.9% of the time, the highest of any hour with enough flights to compare; 2 pm to 3 pm was lowest at 75.4%.
Is it getting better?
On-time departures for the 12 months to July 2026 were 85.7%, down 3.2 points on the previous 12 months (88.9%). The monthly chart shows each of the last 36 months, and each month has its own page.
Does this page show today's delays at KOA?
No. BTS publishes on-time records about two months after the month ends, so this page is a monthly history through July 2026. For live conditions use the FAA airport status service or your airline.
Provenance
Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987 to present), monthly files August 2023 to July 2026; airport name from the BTS airport lookup table. US government works in the public domain. Domestic scheduled flights by reporting carriers only: international flights, charters and smaller carriers are not in the source. Totals and averages only; no individual flight or aircraft is identified. See the methodology; report processing errors through corrections.