FlightRecord

Wilmington International Airport (ILM): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

Wilmington International Airport (ILM) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 91% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 72% in June 2025. Across the year it averages 81% against a national 78%, over roughly 21 departures a day to 12 destinations.

Departures on-time
81%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
16 min
Arrivals on-time
78%
Cancelled
3.0%
Destinations
12
nonstop
Airlines
8

Plan your departure from ILM

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

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
94% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
84% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Envoy Air
83% on-time from ILM
Cancellation risk
3.0%
above the US average
Check routes from ILM ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at ILM50%75%100%June 2024: 81% on-time (731 flights)81Jun 2024July 2024: 73% on-time (860 flights)73August 2024: 77% on-time (869 flights)77September 2024: 86% on-time (715 flights)86Sep 2024October 2024: 91% on-time (777 flights)91November 2024: 90% on-time (659 flights)90December 2024: 79% on-time (709 flights)79Dec 2024January 2025: 88% on-time (453 flights)88February 2025: 79% on-time (422 flights)79March 2025: 86% on-time (514 flights)86Mar 2025April 2025: 84% on-time (598 flights)84May 2025: 80% on-time (656 flights)80June 2025: 72% on-time (766 flights)72Jun 2025July 2025: 75% on-time (768 flights)75August 2025: 84% on-time (716 flights)84September 2025: 86% on-time (698 flights)86Sep 2025October 2025: 82% on-time (723 flights)82November 2025: 81% on-time (558 flights)81December 2025: 76% on-time (544 flights)76Dec 2025January 2026: 83% on-time (499 flights)83February 2026: 80% on-time (450 flights)80March 2026: 79% on-time (497 flights)79Mar 2026April 2026: 84% on-time (587 flights)84May 2026: 83% on-time (738 flights)83

Best time of day to depart from ILM

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at ILM5 a.m.: 94% on-time (740 flights)56 a.m.: 92% on-time (2,825 flights)67 a.m.: 94% on-time (969 flights)78 a.m.: 88% on-time (219 flights)89 a.m.: 87% on-time (382 flights)910 a.m.: 85% on-time (1,137 flights)1011 a.m.: 85% on-time (1,235 flights)1112 p.m.: 77% on-time (1,072 flights)121 p.m.: 76% on-time (572 flights)132 p.m.: 78% on-time (1,058 flights)143 p.m.: 75% on-time (492 flights)154 p.m.: 72% on-time (1,046 flights)165 p.m.: 74% on-time (1,569 flights)176 p.m.: 71% on-time (936 flights)187 p.m.: 67% on-time (792 flights)198 p.m.: 65% on-time (462 flights)20scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday80%20 min
Tuesdaybest84%16 min
Wednesday83%13 min
Thursday79%15 min
Friday78%19 min
Saturday81%16 min
Sunday78%20 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from ILM ↓

Busiest routes from ILM

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ILM → CLT (Charlotte)1,86783%16 min
ILM → ATL (Atlanta)1,13686%13 min
ILM → LGA (New York)1,01979%17 min
ILM → DCA (Washington)87770%28 min
ILM → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)72582%12 min
ILM → ORD (Chicago)56874%19 min
ILM → BOS (Boston)44570%22 min
ILM → MIA (Miami)43987%11 min
ILM → EWR (Newark)27780%17 min
ILM → PHL (Philadelphia)15182%18 min

Compare airlines departing ILM ↓

Where flights into ILM come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
CLT (Charlotte) → ILM1,86976%19 min
ATL (Atlanta) → ILM1,13683%12 min
LGA (New York) → ILM1,01978%14 min
DCA (Washington) → ILM87774%19 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → ILM72575%20 min
ORD (Chicago) → ILM56878%15 min
BOS (Boston) → ILM44587%8 min
MIA (Miami) → ILM43975%17 min

Most reliable routes

  1. ILM → MIA87%
  2. ILM → ATL86%
  3. ILM → CLT83%
  4. ILM → DFW82%
  5. ILM → PHL82%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. ILM → BOS70%
  2. ILM → DCA70%
  3. ILM → ORD74%
  4. ILM → LGA79%
  5. ILM → EWR80%

What causes delays at ILM

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft43%
  • Airline operations28%
  • National airspace system20%
  • Weather8%

Alternative airports near Wilmington

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
OAJ — Albert J Ellis Airport42 mi83%18 min
MYR — Myrtle Beach International Airport72 mi79%19 min

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

Airline performance at ILM

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Envoy Air83%12 min2,327
Republic Airways83%14 min3,097
Delta Air Lines83%15 min1,860
Endeavor Air82%13 min937
American Airlines81%19 min3,907
SkyWest Airlines81%20 min168
PSA Airlines78%21 min2,999
JetBlue Airways69%23 min212

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at ILM?
19% of departures from Wilmington International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, with an average departure delay of 16 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from ILM?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 94% of the time at ILM, versus 65% around 8 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at ILM?
In this dataset, June 2025 was the weakest month at ILM, with 72% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at ILM?
3% of scheduled departures from ILM were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 15,507 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.