FlightRecord

Richmond International Airport (RIC): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Richmond International Airport (RIC) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 90% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 69% in July 2026. Across the year it averages 79% against a national 78%, over roughly 53 departures a day to 25 destinations.

Departures on-time
79%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
17 min
Arrivals on-time
75%
Cancelled
2.4%
Destinations
25
nonstop
Airlines
13

Plan your departure from RIC

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
83% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
90% on-time from RIC
Cancellation risk
2.4%
above the US average
Check routes from RIC ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at RIC50%75%100%August 2024: 77% on-time (1,544 flights)77Aug 2024September 2024: 88% on-time (1,468 flights)88October 2024: 90% on-time (1,602 flights)90November 2024: 88% on-time (1,472 flights)88Nov 2024December 2024: 77% on-time (1,523 flights)77January 2025: 84% on-time (1,200 flights)84February 2025: 84% on-time (1,101 flights)84Feb 2025March 2025: 83% on-time (1,315 flights)83April 2025: 82% on-time (1,335 flights)82May 2025: 78% on-time (1,595 flights)78May 2025June 2025: 74% on-time (1,650 flights)74July 2025: 70% on-time (1,694 flights)70August 2025: 79% on-time (1,543 flights)79Aug 2025September 2025: 84% on-time (1,488 flights)84October 2025: 79% on-time (1,691 flights)79November 2025: 81% on-time (1,649 flights)81Nov 2025December 2025: 72% on-time (1,616 flights)72January 2026: 81% on-time (1,495 flights)81February 2026: 83% on-time (1,458 flights)83Feb 2026March 2026: 76% on-time (1,684 flights)76April 2026: 83% on-time (1,643 flights)83May 2026: 82% on-time (1,623 flights)82May 2026June 2026: 78% on-time (1,655 flights)78July 2026: 69% on-time (1,696 flights)69

Best time of day to depart from RIC

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at RIC5 a.m.: 92% on-time (1,737 flights)56 a.m.: 90% on-time (6,796 flights)67 a.m.: 90% on-time (2,508 flights)78 a.m.: 89% on-time (2,116 flights)89 a.m.: 88% on-time (1,414 flights)910 a.m.: 86% on-time (2,393 flights)1011 a.m.: 82% on-time (2,112 flights)1112 p.m.: 82% on-time (2,412 flights)121 p.m.: 78% on-time (1,959 flights)132 p.m.: 72% on-time (1,110 flights)143 p.m.: 70% on-time (2,566 flights)154 p.m.: 68% on-time (1,972 flights)165 p.m.: 68% on-time (2,251 flights)176 p.m.: 65% on-time (3,192 flights)187 p.m.: 67% on-time (2,597 flights)198 p.m.: 58% on-time (1,010 flights)209 p.m.: 58% on-time (191 flights)21scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday76%19 min
Tuesday82%15 min
Wednesdaybest83%14 min
Thursday79%16 min
Friday77%19 min
Saturday79%17 min
Sunday76%20 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from RIC ↓

Busiest routes from RIC

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
RIC → ATL (Atlanta)2,67486%12 min
RIC → CLT (Charlotte)2,47081%17 min
RIC → LGA (New York)2,27875%20 min
RIC → ORD (Chicago)2,21678%20 min
RIC → BOS (Boston)1,69681%15 min
RIC → MCO (Orlando)1,18872%22 min
RIC → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)1,07872%23 min
RIC → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)80878%16 min
RIC → DEN (Denver)79176%15 min
RIC → BWI (Baltimore)72977%15 min
RIC → DTW (Detroit)65084%15 min
RIC → MIA (Miami)58583%15 min
RIC → EWR (Newark)56266%35 min
RIC → BNA (Nashville)46782%11 min
RIC → MDW (Chicago)41381%12 min
RIC → PHL (Philadelphia)13663%27 min
RIC → IAD (Washington)10288%8 min

Compare airlines departing RIC ↓

Where flights into RIC come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ATL (Atlanta) → RIC2,67479%14 min
CLT (Charlotte) → RIC2,46974%19 min
LGA (New York) → RIC2,27678%15 min
ORD (Chicago) → RIC2,22372%23 min
BOS (Boston) → RIC1,69478%15 min
MCO (Orlando) → RIC1,18772%19 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → RIC1,07869%22 min
FLL (Fort Lauderdale) → RIC80969%21 min

Most reliable routes

  1. RIC → IAD88%
  2. RIC → ATL86%
  3. RIC → DTW84%
  4. RIC → MIA83%
  5. RIC → BNA82%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. RIC → PHL63%
  2. RIC → EWR66%
  3. RIC → DFW72%
  4. RIC → MCO72%
  5. RIC → LGA75%

What causes delays at RIC

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft37%
  • Airline operations32%
  • National airspace system25%
  • Weather6%

Alternative airports near Richmond

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
ORF — Norfolk International Airport75 mi80%18 min
CHO — Charlottesville Albemarle Airport76 mi80%23 min
DCA — Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport94 mi75%21 min
IAD — Washington Dulles International Airport100 mi83%15 min

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

Airline performance at RIC

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines90%9 min1,594
Delta Air Lines85%12 min5,869
Endeavor Air83%16 min1,040
Envoy Air82%11 min860
Republic Airways81%17 min7,922
American Airlines79%20 min7,375
JetBlue Airways78%18 min3,981
Southwest Airlines74%16 min4,471
PSA Airlines73%21 min1,303
SkyWest Airlines73%28 min1,992
Spirit Airlines71%23 min1,365
Frontier Airlines71%28 min163
Allegiant Air66%27 min428

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at RIC?
21% of departures from Richmond 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 RIC?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 92% of the time at RIC, versus 58% around 8 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at RIC?
In this dataset, July 2026 was the weakest month at RIC, with 69% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at RIC?
2.4% of scheduled departures from RIC were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 38,363 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.