FlightRecord

Frederick W. Smith International Airport (MEM): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Frederick W. Smith International Airport (MEM) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 89% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 72% in June 2025. Across the year it averages 81% against a national 78%, over roughly 68 departures a day to 33 destinations.

Departures on-time
81%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
17 min
Arrivals on-time
75%
Cancelled
2.0%
Destinations
33
nonstop
Airlines
12

Plan your departure from MEM

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

Best departure time
Around 6 a.m.
93% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
84% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Endeavor Air
88% on-time from MEM
Cancellation risk
2.0%
above the US average
Check routes from MEM ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at MEM50%75%100%August 2024: 85% on-time (2,042 flights)85Aug 2024September 2024: 87% on-time (1,869 flights)87October 2024: 89% on-time (1,995 flights)89November 2024: 88% on-time (1,787 flights)88Nov 2024December 2024: 82% on-time (1,773 flights)82January 2025: 82% on-time (1,528 flights)82February 2025: 83% on-time (1,456 flights)83Feb 2025March 2025: 84% on-time (1,933 flights)84April 2025: 83% on-time (1,896 flights)83May 2025: 77% on-time (2,177 flights)77May 2025June 2025: 72% on-time (2,243 flights)72July 2025: 77% on-time (2,289 flights)77August 2025: 82% on-time (2,191 flights)82Aug 2025September 2025: 88% on-time (2,059 flights)88October 2025: 84% on-time (2,283 flights)84November 2025: 80% on-time (1,991 flights)80Nov 2025December 2025: 76% on-time (1,956 flights)76January 2026: 81% on-time (1,727 flights)81February 2026: 85% on-time (1,609 flights)85Feb 2026March 2026: 75% on-time (2,053 flights)75April 2026: 82% on-time (2,146 flights)82May 2026: 78% on-time (2,228 flights)78May 2026June 2026: 77% on-time (2,221 flights)77July 2026: 73% on-time (2,259 flights)73

Best time of day to depart from MEM

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at MEM5 a.m.: 91% on-time (3,473 flights)56 a.m.: 93% on-time (7,209 flights)67 a.m.: 90% on-time (5,758 flights)78 a.m.: 87% on-time (2,430 flights)89 a.m.: 85% on-time (2,427 flights)910 a.m.: 82% on-time (3,331 flights)1011 a.m.: 80% on-time (3,072 flights)1112 p.m.: 79% on-time (2,941 flights)121 p.m.: 76% on-time (1,774 flights)132 p.m.: 76% on-time (2,775 flights)143 p.m.: 72% on-time (2,746 flights)154 p.m.: 68% on-time (2,530 flights)165 p.m.: 69% on-time (3,393 flights)176 p.m.: 70% on-time (3,471 flights)187 p.m.: 67% on-time (1,591 flights)198 p.m.: 60% on-time (670 flights)209 p.m.: 72% on-time (206 flights)21scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday80%18 min
Tuesdaybest84%14 min
Wednesday83%13 min
Thursday79%17 min
Friday79%19 min
Saturday81%16 min
Sunday77%20 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from MEM ↓

Busiest routes from MEM

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
MEM → ATL (Atlanta)3,42286%12 min
MEM → ORD (Chicago)2,50976%18 min
MEM → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)2,35374%24 min
MEM → CLT (Charlotte)1,74280%17 min
MEM → DEN (Denver)1,36478%17 min
MEM → DCA (Washington)1,12577%19 min
MEM → IAH (Houston)1,08680%16 min
MEM → LGA (New York)1,06482%15 min
MEM → DTW (Detroit)1,01085%15 min
MEM → MSP (Minneapolis)90088%11 min
MEM → HOU (Houston)83180%12 min
MEM → PHL (Philadelphia)75880%18 min
MEM → MCO (Orlando)73980%14 min
MEM → MDW (Chicago)67084%12 min
MEM → LAS (Las Vegas)58481%15 min
MEM → MIA (Miami)55980%24 min
MEM → BNA (Nashville)51572%15 min
MEM → PHX (Phoenix)48683%17 min
MEM → EWR (Newark)48378%21 min
MEM → DAL (Dallas)45778%15 min
MEM → AUS (Austin)36590%12 min
MEM → SLC (Salt Lake City)36591%10 min
MEM → BOS (Boston)29491%10 min
MEM → BWI (Baltimore)27977%15 min
MEM → LAX (Los Angeles)25678%16 min
MEM → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)20760%41 min

Compare airlines departing MEM ↓

Where flights into MEM come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ATL (Atlanta) → MEM3,42181%13 min
ORD (Chicago) → MEM2,50473%18 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → MEM2,35169%22 min
CLT (Charlotte) → MEM1,74174%19 min
DEN (Denver) → MEM1,36474%19 min
DCA (Washington) → MEM1,12674%19 min
IAH (Houston) → MEM1,08876%17 min
LGA (New York) → MEM1,06779%16 min

Most reliable routes

  1. MEM → BOS91%
  2. MEM → SLC91%
  3. MEM → AUS90%
  4. MEM → MSP88%
  5. MEM → ATL86%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. MEM → FLL60%
  2. MEM → BNA72%
  3. MEM → DFW74%
  4. MEM → ORD76%
  5. MEM → BWI77%

What causes delays at MEM

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft38%
  • Airline operations35%
  • National airspace system20%
  • Weather7%

Airline performance at MEM

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Endeavor Air88%9 min618
Delta Air Lines86%13 min9,255
United Airlines86%13 min3,038
Republic Airways84%14 min6,046
Spirit Airlines80%16 min1,397
SkyWest Airlines80%19 min4,971
American Airlines80%21 min7,832
Envoy Air80%15 min3,649
Southwest Airlines78%14 min8,295
PSA Airlines75%24 min3,283
Frontier Airlines70%26 min389
Allegiant Air61%40 min1,072

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at MEM?
19% of departures from Frederick W. Smith International 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 MEM?
Flights scheduled around 6 a.m. depart on time 93% of the time at MEM, versus 60% around 8 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at MEM?
In this dataset, June 2025 was the weakest month at MEM, with 72% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at MEM?
2% of scheduled departures from MEM were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 49,845 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.