FlightRecord

Missoula Montana Airport (MSO): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Missoula Montana Airport (MSO) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 93% on-time in November 2025 but sank to 76% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 83% against a national 78%, over roughly 14 departures a day to 15 destinations.

Departures on-time
83%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
16 min
Arrivals on-time
81%
Cancelled
0.8%
Destinations
15
nonstop
Airlines
8

Plan your departure from MSO

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

Best departure time
Around 7 a.m.
94% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
83% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Delta Air Lines
90% on-time from MSO
Cancellation risk
0.8%
below the US average
Check routes from MSO ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at MSO50%75%100%August 2024: 79% on-time (503 flights)79Aug 2024September 2024: 86% on-time (376 flights)86October 2024: 88% on-time (319 flights)88November 2024: 90% on-time (289 flights)90Nov 2024December 2024: 84% on-time (303 flights)84January 2025: 79% on-time (288 flights)79February 2025: 82% on-time (256 flights)82Feb 2025March 2025: 83% on-time (299 flights)83April 2025: 85% on-time (294 flights)85May 2025: 79% on-time (324 flights)79May 2025June 2025: 82% on-time (507 flights)82July 2025: 80% on-time (579 flights)80August 2025: 79% on-time (536 flights)79Aug 2025September 2025: 87% on-time (359 flights)87October 2025: 88% on-time (369 flights)88November 2025: 93% on-time (323 flights)93Nov 2025December 2025: 83% on-time (356 flights)83January 2026: 87% on-time (360 flights)87February 2026: 88% on-time (305 flights)88Feb 2026March 2026: 77% on-time (376 flights)77April 2026: 87% on-time (389 flights)87May 2026: 87% on-time (432 flights)87May 2026June 2026: 79% on-time (571 flights)79July 2026: 81% on-time (627 flights)81

Best time of day to depart from MSO

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at MSO5 a.m.: 92% on-time (1,173 flights)56 a.m.: 93% on-time (1,126 flights)67 a.m.: 94% on-time (547 flights)78 a.m.: 92% on-time (198 flights)810 a.m.: 91% on-time (261 flights)1011 a.m.: 94% on-time (317 flights)1112 p.m.: 83% on-time (708 flights)121 p.m.: 78% on-time (1,373 flights)132 p.m.: 71% on-time (1,250 flights)143 p.m.: 82% on-time (408 flights)154 p.m.: 74% on-time (726 flights)165 p.m.: 74% on-time (908 flights)176 p.m.: 88% on-time (725 flights)18scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday79%18 min
Tuesdaybest83%15 min
Wednesday83%13 min
Thursday81%16 min
Friday78%20 min
Saturday81%18 min
Sunday81%18 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from MSO ↓

Busiest routes from MSO

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
MSO → DEN (Denver)1,20479%20 min
MSO → SLC (Salt Lake City)1,05990%10 min
MSO → SEA (Seattle)64678%13 min
MSO → ORD (Chicago)50073%21 min
MSO → MSP (Minneapolis)48990%10 min
MSO → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)43577%24 min
MSO → LAX (Los Angeles)16580%12 min
MSO → AZA (Phoenix)14069%26 min
MSO → SFO (San Francisco)13176%17 min
MSO → LAS (Las Vegas)11371%43 min

Compare airlines departing MSO ↓

Where flights into MSO come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
DEN (Denver) → MSO1,20481%13 min
SLC (Salt Lake City) → MSO1,05989%9 min
SEA (Seattle) → MSO62674%13 min
ORD (Chicago) → MSO49980%12 min
MSP (Minneapolis) → MSO48981%13 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → MSO43573%17 min
LAX (Los Angeles) → MSO16682%8 min
AZA (Phoenix) → MSO14082%15 min

Most reliable routes

  1. MSO → MSP90%
  2. MSO → SLC90%
  3. MSO → LAX80%
  4. MSO → DEN79%
  5. MSO → SEA78%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. MSO → AZA69%
  2. MSO → LAS71%
  3. MSO → ORD73%
  4. MSO → SFO76%
  5. MSO → DFW77%

What causes delays at MSO

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft29%
  • Airline operations40%
  • National airspace system23%
  • Weather8%

Alternative airports near Missoula

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
FCA — Glacier Park International Airport97 mi83%17 min
BTM — Bert Mooney Airport101 mi91%11 min
HLN — Helena Regional Airport102 mi88%15 min

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

Airline performance at MSO

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Delta Air Lines90%12 min1,852
SkyWest Airlines85%13 min3,002
United Airlines83%16 min1,916
Envoy Air80%18 min1,008
Alaska Airlines77%13 min920
Allegiant Air73%33 min647
American Airlines72%35 min465

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at MSO?
17% of departures from Missoula Montana Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, 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 MSO?
Flights scheduled around 7 a.m. depart on time 94% of the time at MSO, versus 71% around 2 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at MSO?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at MSO, with 76% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at MSO?
0.8% of scheduled departures from MSO were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 9,907 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.