FlightRecord

Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 90% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 68% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 80% against a national 78%, over roughly 97 departures a day to 52 destinations.

Departures on-time
80%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
18 min
Arrivals on-time
77%
Cancelled
2.0%
Destinations
52
nonstop
Airlines
13

Plan your departure from RSW

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

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
95% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
82% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
86% on-time from RSW
Cancellation risk
2.0%
above the US average
Check routes from RSW ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at RSW50%75%100%June 2024: 78% on-time (2,084 flights)78Jun 2024July 2024: 68% on-time (2,026 flights)68August 2024: 75% on-time (1,916 flights)75September 2024: 88% on-time (1,813 flights)88Sep 2024October 2024: 90% on-time (2,370 flights)90November 2024: 89% on-time (2,847 flights)89December 2024: 76% on-time (3,548 flights)76Dec 2024January 2025: 82% on-time (3,562 flights)82February 2025: 80% on-time (3,535 flights)80March 2025: 78% on-time (4,390 flights)78Mar 2025April 2025: 83% on-time (3,699 flights)83May 2025: 80% on-time (2,707 flights)80June 2025: 77% on-time (2,267 flights)77Jun 2025July 2025: 75% on-time (2,315 flights)75August 2025: 81% on-time (2,060 flights)81September 2025: 87% on-time (1,847 flights)87Sep 2025October 2025: 81% on-time (2,369 flights)81November 2025: 83% on-time (2,991 flights)83December 2025: 74% on-time (3,480 flights)74Dec 2025January 2026: 77% on-time (3,454 flights)77February 2026: 77% on-time (3,551 flights)77March 2026: 72% on-time (4,504 flights)72Mar 2026April 2026: 81% on-time (3,632 flights)81May 2026: 81% on-time (2,802 flights)81

Best time of day to depart from RSW

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at RSW5 a.m.: 95% on-time (1,326 flights)56 a.m.: 95% on-time (5,045 flights)67 a.m.: 95% on-time (5,164 flights)78 a.m.: 93% on-time (3,459 flights)89 a.m.: 89% on-time (2,880 flights)910 a.m.: 85% on-time (4,019 flights)1011 a.m.: 81% on-time (7,174 flights)1112 p.m.: 79% on-time (5,864 flights)121 p.m.: 78% on-time (4,595 flights)132 p.m.: 75% on-time (3,930 flights)143 p.m.: 73% on-time (3,995 flights)154 p.m.: 72% on-time (4,223 flights)165 p.m.: 70% on-time (4,856 flights)176 p.m.: 72% on-time (4,383 flights)187 p.m.: 66% on-time (5,239 flights)198 p.m.: 65% on-time (2,353 flights)209 p.m.: 65% on-time (1,112 flights)2110 p.m.: 70% on-time (152 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday77%21 min
Tuesdaybest82%15 min
Wednesday82%14 min
Thursday79%17 min
Friday79%17 min
Saturday78%18 min
Sunday73%25 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from RSW ↓

Busiest routes from RSW

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
RSW → ORD (Chicago)3,23478%19 min
RSW → ATL (Atlanta)2,86685%14 min
RSW → BOS (Boston)2,28772%24 min
RSW → EWR (Newark)2,03177%22 min
RSW → DTW (Detroit)1,84779%18 min
RSW → CLT (Charlotte)1,80283%18 min
RSW → BWI (Baltimore)1,45482%13 min
RSW → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)1,39373%28 min
RSW → PHL (Philadelphia)1,34272%29 min
RSW → JFK (New York)1,27978%20 min
RSW → MSP (Minneapolis)1,21982%17 min
RSW → MDW (Chicago)1,16178%14 min
RSW → DEN (Denver)1,11681%13 min
RSW → STL (St. Louis)1,00882%12 min
RSW → CLE (Cleveland)91182%16 min
RSW → LGA (New York)90971%29 min
RSW → IAH (Houston)88285%14 min
RSW → DCA (Washington)82974%24 min
RSW → IND (Indianapolis)81880%14 min
RSW → BNA (Nashville)76781%12 min
RSW → CVG (Cincinnati)68082%19 min
RSW → HPN (White Plains)65579%15 min
RSW → CMH (Columbus)64678%15 min
RSW → MCO (Orlando)54483%10 min
RSW → PIT (Pittsburgh)49280%16 min
RSW → IAD (Washington)46788%10 min
RSW → MKE (Milwaukee)43676%15 min
RSW → ACY (Atlantic City)33676%19 min
RSW → BDL (Hartford)32670%27 min
RSW → MCI (Kansas City)23880%14 min
RSW → PVD (Providence)18178%23 min
RSW → DAL (Dallas)12576%17 min
RSW → SLC (Salt Lake City)11882%14 min
RSW → ORH (Worcester)11374%19 min
RSW → BUF (Buffalo)11277%17 min
RSW → ISP (Islip)11167%22 min

Compare airlines departing RSW ↓

Where flights into RSW come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORD (Chicago) → RSW3,24279%16 min
ATL (Atlanta) → RSW2,86777%15 min
BOS (Boston) → RSW2,28771%20 min
EWR (Newark) → RSW2,03078%16 min
DTW (Detroit) → RSW1,84677%16 min
CLT (Charlotte) → RSW1,80376%16 min
BWI (Baltimore) → RSW1,45275%15 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → RSW1,39166%25 min

Most reliable routes

  1. RSW → IAD88%
  2. RSW → ATL85%
  3. RSW → IAH85%
  4. RSW → CLT83%
  5. RSW → MCO83%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. RSW → ISP67%
  2. RSW → BDL70%
  3. RSW → LGA71%
  4. RSW → BOS72%
  5. RSW → PHL72%

What causes delays at RSW

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft48%
  • Airline operations26%
  • National airspace system22%
  • Weather4%

Alternative airports near Fort Myers

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
PGD — Punta Gorda Airport30 mi79%16 min
SRQ — Sarasota Bradenton International Airport77 mi81%17 min
PBI — Palm Beach International Airport103 mi75%22 min
MIA — Miami International Airport104 mi74%20 min
FLL — Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport104 mi73%20 min

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

Airline performance at RSW

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines86%13 min11,338
Alaska Airlines86%12 min124
Delta Air Lines83%17 min14,895
Southwest Airlines78%14 min15,932
American Airlines77%24 min11,847
Spirit Airlines76%20 min3,112
JetBlue Airways75%23 min8,414
Republic Airways75%17 min194
Envoy Air75%19 min156
Frontier Airlines72%25 min3,511
Allegiant Air70%32 min162

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at RSW?
21% of departures from Southwest Florida International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, 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 RSW?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 95% of the time at RSW, versus 65% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at RSW?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at RSW, with 68% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at RSW?
2% of scheduled departures from RSW were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 69,769 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.