FlightRecord

Kansas City International Airport (MCI): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Kansas City International Airport (MCI) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 90% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 74% in June 2026. Across the year it averages 81% against a national 78%, over roughly 135 departures a day to 63 destinations.

Departures on-time
81%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
15 min
Arrivals on-time
77%
Cancelled
1.5%
Destinations
63
nonstop
Airlines
13

Plan your departure from MCI

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

Best departure time
Around 6 a.m.
94% on-time
Best day to fly
Wednesday
84% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Alaska Airlines
88% on-time from MCI
Cancellation risk
1.5%
close to the US average
Check routes from MCI ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at MCI50%75%100%August 2024: 83% on-time (4,371 flights)83Aug 2024September 2024: 89% on-time (4,141 flights)89October 2024: 90% on-time (4,419 flights)90November 2024: 88% on-time (4,046 flights)88Nov 2024December 2024: 82% on-time (3,962 flights)82January 2025: 84% on-time (3,481 flights)84February 2025: 82% on-time (3,365 flights)82Feb 2025March 2025: 83% on-time (4,033 flights)83April 2025: 84% on-time (3,969 flights)84May 2025: 80% on-time (4,363 flights)80May 2025June 2025: 74% on-time (4,395 flights)74July 2025: 76% on-time (4,442 flights)76August 2025: 81% on-time (4,113 flights)81Aug 2025September 2025: 84% on-time (3,928 flights)84October 2025: 82% on-time (4,214 flights)82November 2025: 82% on-time (3,956 flights)82Nov 2025December 2025: 74% on-time (3,969 flights)74January 2026: 84% on-time (3,508 flights)84February 2026: 82% on-time (3,503 flights)82Feb 2026March 2026: 76% on-time (4,227 flights)76April 2026: 81% on-time (4,184 flights)81May 2026: 77% on-time (4,354 flights)77May 2026June 2026: 74% on-time (4,581 flights)74July 2026: 75% on-time (4,761 flights)75

Best time of day to depart from MCI

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at MCI5 a.m.: 92% on-time (7,346 flights)56 a.m.: 94% on-time (11,820 flights)67 a.m.: 93% on-time (6,978 flights)78 a.m.: 90% on-time (4,115 flights)89 a.m.: 87% on-time (4,343 flights)910 a.m.: 86% on-time (6,566 flights)1011 a.m.: 84% on-time (6,013 flights)1112 p.m.: 81% on-time (5,766 flights)121 p.m.: 79% on-time (5,915 flights)132 p.m.: 77% on-time (7,414 flights)143 p.m.: 75% on-time (7,284 flights)154 p.m.: 71% on-time (5,961 flights)165 p.m.: 70% on-time (8,456 flights)176 p.m.: 69% on-time (6,881 flights)187 p.m.: 65% on-time (4,862 flights)198 p.m.: 58% on-time (1,734 flights)209 p.m.: 63% on-time (1,179 flights)2110 p.m.: 57% on-time (237 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday79%17 min
Tuesday83%13 min
Wednesdaybest84%13 min
Thursday80%14 min
Friday80%16 min
Saturday82%14 min
Sunday77%17 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from MCI ↓

Busiest routes from MCI

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
MCI → DEN (Denver)4,32777%16 min
MCI → ORD (Chicago)4,19779%21 min
MCI → ATL (Atlanta)3,27286%11 min
MCI → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)2,52575%24 min
MCI → PHX (Phoenix)2,47482%14 min
MCI → MDW (Chicago)2,10783%11 min
MCI → DAL (Dallas)2,03282%12 min
MCI → LAS (Las Vegas)2,00882%11 min
MCI → DCA (Washington)1,92776%20 min
MCI → LGA (New York)1,82279%18 min
MCI → MCO (Orlando)1,55480%13 min
MCI → BNA (Nashville)1,37483%10 min
MCI → DTW (Detroit)1,34288%10 min
MCI → LAX (Los Angeles)1,31383%12 min
MCI → CLT (Charlotte)1,19480%21 min
MCI → SEA (Seattle)1,13184%11 min
MCI → MSP (Minneapolis)1,05384%15 min
MCI → STL (St. Louis)1,02087%7 min
MCI → SLC (Salt Lake City)1,00988%9 min
MCI → HOU (Houston)1,00182%11 min
MCI → AUS (Austin)98282%11 min
MCI → PHL (Philadelphia)90678%24 min
MCI → BWI (Baltimore)88281%11 min
MCI → MIA (Miami)84484%12 min
MCI → TPA (Tampa)67278%13 min
MCI → BOS (Boston)64678%19 min
MCI → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)55177%16 min
MCI → EWR (Newark)48980%20 min
MCI → IAH (Houston)48685%12 min
MCI → SAN (San Diego)38577%13 min
MCI → SFO (San Francisco)36579%17 min
MCI → MSY (New Orleans)36478%13 min
MCI → IND (Indianapolis)35079%12 min
MCI → MKE (Milwaukee)34977%12 min
MCI → PDX (Portland)34786%10 min
MCI → SAT (San Antonio)27076%15 min
MCI → RSW (Fort Myers)21979%14 min
MCI → SMF (Sacramento)20773%15 min
MCI → ABQ (Albuquerque)20686%9 min
MCI → PNS (Pensacola)19086%9 min
MCI → OAK (Oakland)15969%15 min
MCI → IAD (Washington)14486%20 min
MCI → PIE (St. Petersburg)10868%28 min

Compare airlines departing MCI ↓

Where flights into MCI come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
DEN (Denver) → MCI4,32176%16 min
ORD (Chicago) → MCI4,19774%20 min
ATL (Atlanta) → MCI3,27280%13 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → MCI2,52869%24 min
PHX (Phoenix) → MCI2,47279%13 min
MDW (Chicago) → MCI2,10280%12 min
DAL (Dallas) → MCI2,05576%14 min
LAS (Las Vegas) → MCI1,99279%12 min

Most reliable routes

  1. MCI → DTW88%
  2. MCI → SLC88%
  3. MCI → STL87%
  4. MCI → ABQ86%
  5. MCI → ATL86%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. MCI → PIE68%
  2. MCI → OAK69%
  3. MCI → SMF73%
  4. MCI → DFW75%
  5. MCI → DCA76%

What causes delays at MCI

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft44%
  • Airline operations29%
  • National airspace system22%
  • Weather5%

Alternative airports near Kansas City

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
MHK — Manhattan Regional Airport105 mi84%17 min

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

Airline performance at MCI

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Alaska Airlines88%9 min1,901
Delta Air Lines88%12 min16,642
United Airlines86%13 min7,402
Republic Airways86%14 min3,410
Envoy Air82%13 min3,064
SkyWest Airlines82%20 min3,765
Endeavor Air82%19 min502
American Airlines79%22 min11,119
Spirit Airlines79%18 min2,430
Southwest Airlines78%14 min49,351
PSA Airlines76%31 min1,886
Frontier Airlines71%25 min835
Allegiant Air69%24 min571

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at MCI?
19% of departures from Kansas City International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, with an average departure delay of 15 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from MCI?
Flights scheduled around 6 a.m. depart on time 94% of the time at MCI, versus 57% around 10 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at MCI?
In this dataset, June 2026 was the weakest month at MCI, with 74% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at MCI?
1.5% of scheduled departures from MCI were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 102,878 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.