FlightRecord

Norfolk International Airport (ORF): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Norfolk International Airport (ORF) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 88% on-time in November 2024 but sank to 67% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 80% against a national 78%, over roughly 55 departures a day to 30 destinations.

Departures on-time
80%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
18 min
Arrivals on-time
75%
Cancelled
2.4%
Destinations
30
nonstop
Airlines
13

Plan your departure from ORF

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

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
92% on-time
Best day to fly
Wednesday
82% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
87% on-time from ORF
Cancellation risk
2.4%
above the US average
Check routes from ORF ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at ORF50%75%100%August 2024: 77% on-time (1,972 flights)77Aug 2024September 2024: 87% on-time (1,888 flights)87October 2024: 87% on-time (1,936 flights)87November 2024: 88% on-time (1,790 flights)88Nov 2024December 2024: 80% on-time (1,728 flights)80January 2025: 85% on-time (1,441 flights)85February 2025: 83% on-time (1,288 flights)83Feb 2025March 2025: 83% on-time (1,554 flights)83April 2025: 84% on-time (1,567 flights)84May 2025: 78% on-time (1,676 flights)78May 2025June 2025: 72% on-time (1,821 flights)72July 2025: 68% on-time (1,917 flights)68August 2025: 82% on-time (1,816 flights)82Aug 2025September 2025: 88% on-time (1,734 flights)88October 2025: 85% on-time (1,765 flights)85November 2025: 83% on-time (1,648 flights)83Nov 2025December 2025: 74% on-time (1,645 flights)74January 2026: 83% on-time (1,390 flights)83February 2026: 82% on-time (1,329 flights)82Feb 2026March 2026: 79% on-time (1,561 flights)79April 2026: 84% on-time (1,655 flights)84May 2026: 82% on-time (1,790 flights)82May 2026June 2026: 75% on-time (1,875 flights)75July 2026: 69% on-time (1,978 flights)69

Best time of day to depart from ORF

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at ORF5 a.m.: 92% on-time (2,823 flights)56 a.m.: 90% on-time (7,898 flights)67 a.m.: 89% on-time (2,135 flights)78 a.m.: 86% on-time (2,498 flights)89 a.m.: 83% on-time (1,448 flights)910 a.m.: 85% on-time (2,630 flights)1011 a.m.: 82% on-time (2,031 flights)1112 p.m.: 81% on-time (2,675 flights)121 p.m.: 78% on-time (2,369 flights)132 p.m.: 78% on-time (1,477 flights)143 p.m.: 70% on-time (2,885 flights)154 p.m.: 72% on-time (2,444 flights)165 p.m.: 71% on-time (3,063 flights)176 p.m.: 65% on-time (2,778 flights)187 p.m.: 67% on-time (2,263 flights)198 p.m.: 65% on-time (1,093 flights)209 p.m.: 60% on-time (195 flights)21scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday77%22 min
Tuesday81%18 min
Wednesdaybest82%15 min
Thursday79%18 min
Friday77%19 min
Saturday80%17 min
Sunday76%20 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from ORF ↓

Busiest routes from ORF

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORF → ATL (Atlanta)2,94182%16 min
ORF → CLT (Charlotte)2,47081%19 min
ORF → ORD (Chicago)1,89978%17 min
ORF → BWI (Baltimore)1,54983%11 min
ORF → LGA (New York)1,28877%19 min
ORF → DCA (Washington)1,04071%31 min
ORF → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)97972%29 min
ORF → PHL (Philadelphia)83074%28 min
ORF → EWR (Newark)82280%20 min
ORF → MCO (Orlando)80176%18 min
ORF → JFK (New York)73182%15 min
ORF → DTW (Detroit)69480%20 min
ORF → IAD (Washington)68989%9 min
ORF → MIA (Miami)63884%18 min
ORF → DEN (Denver)63677%16 min
ORF → MDW (Chicago)57779%13 min
ORF → BOS (Boston)47475%25 min
ORF → BNA (Nashville)42380%12 min
ORF → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)41976%19 min

Compare airlines departing ORF ↓

Where flights into ORF come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ATL (Atlanta) → ORF2,94176%16 min
CLT (Charlotte) → ORF2,47074%20 min
ORD (Chicago) → ORF1,89774%19 min
BWI (Baltimore) → ORF1,54977%13 min
LGA (New York) → ORF1,28978%15 min
DCA (Washington) → ORF1,04168%25 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → ORF97967%23 min
PHL (Philadelphia) → ORF82971%30 min

Most reliable routes

  1. ORF → IAD89%
  2. ORF → MIA84%
  3. ORF → BWI83%
  4. ORF → JFK82%
  5. ORF → ATL82%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. ORF → DCA71%
  2. ORF → DFW72%
  3. ORF → PHL74%
  4. ORF → BOS75%
  5. ORF → FLL76%

What causes delays at ORF

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft37%
  • Airline operations35%
  • National airspace system23%
  • Weather5%

Alternative airports near Norfolk

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
RIC — Richmond International Airport75 mi79%17 min

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

Airline performance at ORF

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines87%13 min3,857
Republic Airways84%15 min7,351
Envoy Air82%13 min1,046
Delta Air Lines81%16 min6,172
American Airlines79%23 min5,704
PSA Airlines78%25 min6,722
Endeavor Air78%18 min1,048
Southwest Airlines77%14 min6,794
SkyWest Airlines77%24 min1,042
Spirit Airlines75%19 min1,357
Frontier Airlines73%27 min802
JetBlue Airways67%28 min562
Allegiant Air58%38 min252

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at ORF?
20% of departures from Norfolk International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, with an average departure delay of 18 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from ORF?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 92% of the time at ORF, versus 60% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at ORF?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at ORF, with 67% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at ORF?
2.4% of scheduled departures from ORF were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 42,709 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.