FlightRecord

Harrisburg International Airport (MDT): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

Harrisburg International Airport (MDT) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 88% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 68% in December 2025. Across the year it averages 79% against a national 78%, over roughly 15 departures a day to 22 destinations.

Departures on-time
79%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
21 min
Arrivals on-time
75%
Cancelled
1.7%
Destinations
22
nonstop
Airlines
10

Plan your departure from MDT

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

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
93% on-time
Best day to fly
Wednesday
83% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
87% on-time from MDT
Cancellation risk
1.7%
close to the US average
Check routes from MDT ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at MDT50%75%100%June 2024: 78% on-time (503 flights)78Jun 2024July 2024: 72% on-time (504 flights)72August 2024: 76% on-time (467 flights)76September 2024: 82% on-time (428 flights)82Sep 2024October 2024: 88% on-time (488 flights)88November 2024: 85% on-time (458 flights)85December 2024: 75% on-time (414 flights)75Dec 2024January 2025: 79% on-time (306 flights)79February 2025: 78% on-time (345 flights)78March 2025: 84% on-time (422 flights)84Mar 2025April 2025: 86% on-time (483 flights)86May 2025: 84% on-time (479 flights)84June 2025: 74% on-time (453 flights)74Jun 2025July 2025: 76% on-time (423 flights)76August 2025: 80% on-time (410 flights)80September 2025: 84% on-time (357 flights)84Sep 2025October 2025: 82% on-time (475 flights)82November 2025: 83% on-time (473 flights)83December 2025: 68% on-time (443 flights)68Dec 2025January 2026: 79% on-time (485 flights)79February 2026: 78% on-time (454 flights)78March 2026: 70% on-time (474 flights)70Mar 2026April 2026: 79% on-time (537 flights)79May 2026: 84% on-time (560 flights)84

Best time of day to depart from MDT

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at MDT5 a.m.: 93% on-time (530 flights)56 a.m.: 89% on-time (2,863 flights)67 a.m.: 87% on-time (170 flights)78 a.m.: 90% on-time (443 flights)89 a.m.: 83% on-time (267 flights)910 a.m.: 78% on-time (514 flights)1011 a.m.: 79% on-time (787 flights)1112 p.m.: 78% on-time (618 flights)121 p.m.: 85% on-time (418 flights)132 p.m.: 71% on-time (146 flights)143 p.m.: 68% on-time (502 flights)154 p.m.: 72% on-time (498 flights)165 p.m.: 74% on-time (1,374 flights)176 p.m.: 69% on-time (887 flights)187 p.m.: 70% on-time (252 flights)198 p.m.: 60% on-time (368 flights)209 p.m.: 46% on-time (158 flights)21scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday76%26 min
Tuesday81%17 min
Wednesdaybest83%16 min
Thursday79%19 min
Friday77%21 min
Saturday80%20 min
Sunday76%25 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from MDT ↓

Busiest routes from MDT

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
MDT → ORD (Chicago)2,03276%20 min
MDT → ATL (Atlanta)97585%14 min
MDT → CLT (Charlotte)72782%20 min
MDT → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)36583%19 min
MDT → SFB (Sanford)27862%44 min
MDT → DTW (Detroit)25882%20 min
MDT → PIE (St. Petersburg)16466%26 min
MDT → PGD (Punta Gorda)15677%19 min
MDT → MCO (Orlando)12574%31 min
MDT → SRQ (Sarasota/Bradenton)11285%26 min

Compare airlines departing MDT ↓

Where flights into MDT come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORD (Chicago) → MDT2,03474%19 min
ATL (Atlanta) → MDT97483%11 min
CLT (Charlotte) → MDT72674%20 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → MDT36555%42 min
SFB (Sanford) → MDT27873%19 min
DTW (Detroit) → MDT25976%24 min
PIE (St. Petersburg) → MDT16473%16 min
PGD (Punta Gorda) → MDT15586%10 min

Most reliable routes

  1. MDT → ATL85%
  2. MDT → SRQ85%
  3. MDT → DFW83%
  4. MDT → CLT82%
  5. MDT → DTW82%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. MDT → SFB62%
  2. MDT → PIE66%
  3. MDT → MCO74%
  4. MDT → ORD76%
  5. MDT → PGD77%

What causes delays at MDT

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft33%
  • Airline operations42%
  • National airspace system16%
  • Weather8%

Alternative airports near Harrisburg

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
BWI — Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport70 mi73%17 min
SCE — State College Regional Airport73 mi78%24 min
ABE — Lehigh Valley International Airport76 mi83%18 min
PHL — Philadelphia International Airport83 mi77%20 min
DCA — Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport94 mi76%20 min

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

Airline performance at MDT

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines87%11 min941
Republic Airways85%10 min434
PSA Airlines84%21 min660
Delta Air Lines83%15 min1,913
American Airlines82%19 min2,243
SkyWest Airlines78%26 min1,502
Envoy Air76%19 min873
Frontier Airlines72%31 min215
Allegiant Air71%30 min2,014

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at MDT?
21% of departures from Harrisburg International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, with an average departure delay of 21 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from MDT?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 93% of the time at MDT, versus 46% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at MDT?
In this dataset, December 2025 was the weakest month at MDT, with 68% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at MDT?
1.7% of scheduled departures from MDT were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 10,841 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.