FlightRecord

Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 84% on-time in November 2024 but sank to 56% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 73% against a national 78%, over roughly 259 departures a day to 78 destinations.

Departures on-time
73%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
17 min
Arrivals on-time
80%
Cancelled
1.6%
Destinations
78
nonstop
Airlines
14

Plan your departure from BWI

The choices most likely to improve your odds, based on this airport’s historical record.

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
92% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
81% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
86% on-time from BWI
Cancellation risk
1.6%
close to the US average
Check routes from BWI ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at BWI50%75%100%August 2024: 64% on-time (8,940 flights)64Aug 2024September 2024: 80% on-time (8,273 flights)80October 2024: 81% on-time (8,402 flights)81November 2024: 84% on-time (7,796 flights)84Nov 2024December 2024: 73% on-time (7,908 flights)73January 2025: 80% on-time (7,094 flights)80February 2025: 80% on-time (6,571 flights)80Feb 2025March 2025: 77% on-time (7,927 flights)77April 2025: 79% on-time (8,107 flights)79May 2025: 71% on-time (8,411 flights)71May 2025June 2025: 65% on-time (8,660 flights)65July 2025: 62% on-time (8,922 flights)62August 2025: 75% on-time (8,381 flights)75Aug 2025September 2025: 82% on-time (7,968 flights)82October 2025: 76% on-time (8,475 flights)76November 2025: 80% on-time (7,721 flights)80Nov 2025December 2025: 68% on-time (7,863 flights)68January 2026: 81% on-time (6,934 flights)81February 2026: 77% on-time (6,552 flights)77Feb 2026March 2026: 66% on-time (7,803 flights)66April 2026: 76% on-time (8,041 flights)76May 2026: 72% on-time (8,161 flights)72May 2026June 2026: 65% on-time (8,045 flights)65July 2026: 60% on-time (8,485 flights)60

Best time of day to depart from BWI

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at BWI5 a.m.: 92% on-time (1,732 flights)56 a.m.: 91% on-time (18,835 flights)67 a.m.: 88% on-time (7,603 flights)78 a.m.: 88% on-time (19,733 flights)89 a.m.: 81% on-time (10,407 flights)910 a.m.: 83% on-time (15,107 flights)1011 a.m.: 80% on-time (9,999 flights)1112 p.m.: 77% on-time (8,077 flights)121 p.m.: 72% on-time (10,045 flights)132 p.m.: 70% on-time (9,921 flights)143 p.m.: 65% on-time (11,540 flights)154 p.m.: 66% on-time (10,664 flights)165 p.m.: 63% on-time (11,367 flights)176 p.m.: 64% on-time (13,706 flights)187 p.m.: 60% on-time (12,076 flights)198 p.m.: 59% on-time (12,745 flights)209 p.m.: 55% on-time (9,923 flights)2110 p.m.: 46% on-time (6,999 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday75%18 min
Tuesdaybest81%12 min
Wednesday81%13 min
Thursday77%15 min
Friday75%17 min
Saturday76%16 min
Sunday72%19 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from BWI ↓

Busiest routes from BWI

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
BWI → ATL (Atlanta)5,40779%16 min
BWI → MCO (Orlando)4,68276%18 min
BWI → BOS (Boston)3,51776%17 min
BWI → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)3,13576%16 min
BWI → CLT (Charlotte)2,96078%19 min
BWI → DEN (Denver)2,81477%15 min
BWI → ORD (Chicago)2,68978%20 min
BWI → TPA (Tampa)2,67378%15 min
BWI → MIA (Miami)2,28974%20 min
BWI → DTW (Detroit)2,25181%16 min
BWI → PVD (Providence)1,86778%14 min
BWI → MDW (Chicago)1,83876%16 min
BWI → BNA (Nashville)1,81280%13 min
BWI → DAL (Dallas)1,80376%15 min
BWI → RDU (Raleigh/Durham)1,79280%13 min
BWI → LAS (Las Vegas)1,78978%14 min
BWI → ALB (Albany)1,76078%13 min
BWI → BUF (Buffalo)1,74875%15 min
BWI → BDL (Hartford)1,74779%13 min
BWI → MHT (Manchester)1,74580%13 min
BWI → LAX (Los Angeles)1,70176%15 min
BWI → ORF (Norfolk)1,54977%13 min
BWI → HOU (Houston)1,46876%14 min
BWI → RSW (Fort Myers)1,41175%15 min
BWI → MSP (Minneapolis)1,40981%16 min
BWI → JAX (Jacksonville)1,40176%14 min
BWI → PWM (Portland)1,34278%12 min
BWI → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)1,33873%28 min
BWI → IAH (Houston)1,31079%18 min
BWI → STL (St. Louis)1,26880%13 min
BWI → AUS (Austin)1,26077%14 min
BWI → SRQ (Sarasota/Bradenton)1,25078%15 min
BWI → ISP (Islip)1,23676%14 min
BWI → CHS (Charleston)1,23478%13 min
BWI → PHX (Phoenix)1,23477%13 min
BWI → PBI (West Palm Beach/Palm Beach)1,23376%16 min
BWI → IND (Indianapolis)1,21977%14 min
BWI → SJU (San Juan)1,16268%23 min
BWI → SAN (San Diego)1,15974%15 min
BWI → MSY (New Orleans)1,15776%16 min
BWI → ROC (Rochester)1,10574%15 min
BWI → PIT (Pittsburgh)1,07577%15 min
BWI → CMH (Columbus)1,05677%15 min
BWI → SFO (San Francisco)1,05475%15 min
BWI → MYR (Myrtle Beach)1,03878%15 min
BWI → SAV (Savannah)99578%14 min
BWI → CLE (Cleveland)97075%16 min
BWI → SDF (Louisville)89078%13 min
BWI → MCI (Kansas City)87974%17 min
BWI → MKE (Milwaukee)83076%15 min

Compare airlines departing BWI ↓

Where flights into BWI come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ATL (Atlanta) → BWI5,40474%18 min
MCO (Orlando) → BWI4,69577%15 min
BOS (Boston) → BWI3,51380%15 min
FLL (Fort Lauderdale) → BWI3,11875%17 min
CLT (Charlotte) → BWI2,95874%20 min
DEN (Denver) → BWI2,81576%13 min
ORD (Chicago) → BWI2,69175%18 min
TPA (Tampa) → BWI2,65180%14 min

Most reliable routes

  1. BWI → VPS86%
  2. BWI → MEM82%
  3. BWI → MSP81%
  4. BWI → DTW81%
  5. BWI → MHT80%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. BWI → TYS62%
  2. BWI → ONT63%
  3. BWI → SMF63%
  4. BWI → SJC65%
  5. BWI → SJU68%

What causes delays at BWI

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT, weighted across routes departing BWI.

  • Late-arriving aircraft40%
  • Airline operations33%
  • National airspace system21%
  • Weather5%

Alternative airports near Baltimore

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
DCA — Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport30 mi75%21 min
IAD — Washington Dulles International Airport45 mi83%15 min
MDT — Harrisburg International Airport70 mi79%21 min
PHL — Philadelphia International Airport90 mi77%20 min
ACY — Atlantic City International Airport113 mi81%17 min

Compare the airport-level record first, then check the exact route you plan to book.

Airline performance at BWI

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines86%13 min8,394
Delta Air Lines84%15 min11,087
Republic Airways83%15 min2,612
Envoy Air80%16 min1,773
Endeavor Air80%23 min231
American Airlines79%22 min7,488
PSA Airlines77%13 min155
Spirit Airlines77%19 min9,537
Alaska Airlines72%16 min1,317
Southwest Airlines71%17 min151,046
Frontier Airlines69%30 min6,667

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at BWI?
27% of departures from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, with an average departure delay of 17 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from BWI?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 92% of the time at BWI, versus 46% around 10 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at BWI?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at BWI, with 56% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at BWI?
1.6% of scheduled departures from BWI were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 200,509 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.