FlightRecord

Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 87% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 70% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 80% against a national 78%, over roughly 153 departures a day to 48 destinations.

Departures on-time
80%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
17 min
Arrivals on-time
77%
Cancelled
2.0%
Destinations
48
nonstop
Airlines
13

Plan your departure from RDU

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

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
94% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
83% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
84% on-time from RDU
Cancellation risk
2.0%
above the US average
Check routes from RDU ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at RDU50%75%100%June 2024: 76% on-time (5,509 flights)76Jun 2024July 2024: 70% on-time (5,667 flights)70August 2024: 75% on-time (5,535 flights)75September 2024: 85% on-time (5,104 flights)85Sep 2024October 2024: 87% on-time (5,358 flights)87November 2024: 87% on-time (5,064 flights)87December 2024: 81% on-time (5,010 flights)81Dec 2024January 2025: 85% on-time (4,205 flights)85February 2025: 84% on-time (3,848 flights)84March 2025: 83% on-time (4,579 flights)83Mar 2025April 2025: 83% on-time (4,528 flights)83May 2025: 81% on-time (4,800 flights)81June 2025: 74% on-time (4,864 flights)74Jun 2025July 2025: 71% on-time (4,907 flights)71August 2025: 79% on-time (4,640 flights)79September 2025: 86% on-time (4,484 flights)86Sep 2025October 2025: 81% on-time (4,929 flights)81November 2025: 81% on-time (4,796 flights)81December 2025: 75% on-time (4,803 flights)75Dec 2025January 2026: 82% on-time (4,163 flights)82February 2026: 82% on-time (3,954 flights)82March 2026: 75% on-time (4,658 flights)75Mar 2026April 2026: 83% on-time (4,748 flights)83May 2026: 82% on-time (4,884 flights)82

Best time of day to depart from RDU

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at RDU5 a.m.: 94% on-time (4,708 flights)56 a.m.: 93% on-time (14,238 flights)67 a.m.: 90% on-time (10,567 flights)78 a.m.: 88% on-time (6,705 flights)89 a.m.: 88% on-time (5,496 flights)910 a.m.: 87% on-time (5,453 flights)1011 a.m.: 83% on-time (7,113 flights)1112 p.m.: 80% on-time (7,465 flights)121 p.m.: 79% on-time (6,064 flights)132 p.m.: 76% on-time (4,421 flights)143 p.m.: 74% on-time (6,555 flights)154 p.m.: 71% on-time (6,386 flights)165 p.m.: 69% on-time (7,910 flights)176 p.m.: 68% on-time (9,545 flights)187 p.m.: 67% on-time (7,265 flights)198 p.m.: 65% on-time (3,396 flights)209 p.m.: 64% on-time (1,219 flights)2110 p.m.: 64% on-time (522 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday78%19 min
Tuesdaybest83%15 min
Wednesday82%15 min
Thursday78%17 min
Friday77%19 min
Saturday81%16 min
Sunday77%19 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from RDU ↓

Busiest routes from RDU

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
RDU → ATL (Atlanta)4,61385%12 min
RDU → ORD (Chicago)3,53478%21 min
RDU → CLT (Charlotte)3,09180%17 min
RDU → BOS (Boston)2,81180%17 min
RDU → LGA (New York)2,79772%25 min
RDU → MCO (Orlando)2,70279%19 min
RDU → PHL (Philadelphia)2,52473%27 min
RDU → JFK (New York)2,37978%17 min
RDU → MIA (Miami)2,37378%20 min
RDU → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)2,27877%21 min
RDU → BNA (Nashville)2,21383%11 min
RDU → EWR (Newark)1,99172%27 min
RDU → DCA (Washington)1,97168%24 min
RDU → BWI (Baltimore)1,81185%10 min
RDU → DEN (Denver)1,79580%15 min
RDU → DTW (Detroit)1,56786%12 min
RDU → IAD (Washington)1,33589%10 min
RDU → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)1,29879%16 min
RDU → TPA (Tampa)1,27580%15 min
RDU → MSP (Minneapolis)1,23484%15 min
RDU → MDW (Chicago)1,01280%12 min
RDU → SEA (Seattle)91978%12 min
RDU → IAH (Houston)91080%19 min
RDU → SFO (San Francisco)90183%12 min
RDU → LAX (Los Angeles)80984%13 min
RDU → PHX (Phoenix)79085%10 min
RDU → LAS (Las Vegas)74884%9 min
RDU → PIT (Pittsburgh)71086%10 min
RDU → STL (St. Louis)64884%10 min
RDU → AUS (Austin)51280%12 min
RDU → SJU (San Juan)46971%28 min
RDU → DAL (Dallas)43974%14 min
RDU → SLC (Salt Lake City)43583%13 min
RDU → HOU (Houston)35484%10 min
RDU → CLE (Cleveland)22080%20 min
RDU → BUF (Buffalo)10670%20 min

Compare airlines departing RDU ↓

Where flights into RDU come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ATL (Atlanta) → RDU4,61380%13 min
ORD (Chicago) → RDU3,53576%19 min
CLT (Charlotte) → RDU3,09176%18 min
BOS (Boston) → RDU2,81178%17 min
LGA (New York) → RDU2,79977%18 min
MCO (Orlando) → RDU2,70377%19 min
PHL (Philadelphia) → RDU2,52175%21 min
JFK (New York) → RDU2,38177%16 min

Most reliable routes

  1. RDU → IAD89%
  2. RDU → DTW86%
  3. RDU → PIT86%
  4. RDU → ATL85%
  5. RDU → BWI85%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. RDU → DCA68%
  2. RDU → BUF70%
  3. RDU → SJU71%
  4. RDU → EWR72%
  5. RDU → LGA72%

What causes delays at RDU

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft43%
  • Airline operations27%
  • National airspace system25%
  • Weather4%

Alternative airports near Raleigh/Durham

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
GSO — Piedmont Triad International Airport66 mi84%15 min
OAJ — Albert J Ellis Airport98 mi83%18 min
USA — Concord-Padgett Regional Airport113 mi59%39 min
ROA — Roanoke–Blacksburg Regional Airport120 mi76%27 min

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

Airline performance at RDU

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines84%16 min11,813
Delta Air Lines84%14 min23,524
SkyWest Airlines83%14 min1,262
Envoy Air82%16 min2,354
Republic Airways82%15 min14,216
Endeavor Air81%18 min3,686
American Airlines80%20 min20,638
Southwest Airlines78%13 min18,192
JetBlue Airways78%19 min6,075
Alaska Airlines75%14 min1,127
Frontier Airlines74%25 min8,790
PSA Airlines71%26 min2,226
Spirit Airlines65%28 min1,134

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at RDU?
20% of departures from Raleigh-Durham International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, 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 RDU?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 94% of the time at RDU, versus 64% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at RDU?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at RDU, with 70% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at RDU?
2% of scheduled departures from RDU were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 115,037 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.