FlightRecord

South Bend International Airport (SBN): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

South Bend International Airport (SBN) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 87% on-time in September 2025 but sank to 65% in December 2025. Across the year it averages 77% against a national 78%, over roughly 22 departures a day to 28 destinations.

Departures on-time
77%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
24 min
Arrivals on-time
73%
Cancelled
1.9%
Destinations
28
nonstop
Airlines
8

Plan your departure from SBN

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

Best departure time
Around 6 a.m.
89% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
77% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Republic Airways
87% on-time from SBN
Cancellation risk
1.9%
above the US average
Check routes from SBN ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at SBN50%75%100%August 2024: 76% on-time (575 flights)76Aug 2024September 2024: 84% on-time (580 flights)84October 2024: 85% on-time (631 flights)85November 2024: 86% on-time (610 flights)86Nov 2024December 2024: 77% on-time (630 flights)77January 2025: 79% on-time (621 flights)79February 2025: 77% on-time (572 flights)77Feb 2025March 2025: 76% on-time (661 flights)76April 2025: 82% on-time (631 flights)82May 2025: 81% on-time (646 flights)81May 2025June 2025: 75% on-time (649 flights)75July 2025: 74% on-time (673 flights)74August 2025: 79% on-time (642 flights)79Aug 2025September 2025: 87% on-time (661 flights)87October 2025: 84% on-time (741 flights)84November 2025: 76% on-time (675 flights)76Nov 2025December 2025: 65% on-time (676 flights)65January 2026: 67% on-time (648 flights)67February 2026: 74% on-time (620 flights)74Feb 2026March 2026: 69% on-time (711 flights)69April 2026: 76% on-time (682 flights)76May 2026: 77% on-time (710 flights)77May 2026June 2026: 80% on-time (654 flights)80July 2026: 74% on-time (676 flights)74

Best time of day to depart from SBN

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at SBN6 a.m.: 89% on-time (2,134 flights)67 a.m.: 83% on-time (2,260 flights)78 a.m.: 83% on-time (932 flights)89 a.m.: 83% on-time (1,102 flights)910 a.m.: 83% on-time (334 flights)1011 a.m.: 78% on-time (1,184 flights)1112 p.m.: 76% on-time (1,232 flights)121 p.m.: 73% on-time (1,243 flights)132 p.m.: 79% on-time (554 flights)143 p.m.: 73% on-time (471 flights)154 p.m.: 68% on-time (1,238 flights)165 p.m.: 68% on-time (1,311 flights)176 p.m.: 72% on-time (897 flights)187 p.m.: 68% on-time (599 flights)198 p.m.: 67% on-time (221 flights)209 p.m.: 53% on-time (223 flights)2110 p.m.: 55% on-time (114 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday72%30 min
Tuesdaybest77%24 min
Wednesday77%26 min
Thursday76%23 min
Friday73%23 min
Saturday75%23 min
Sunday71%30 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from SBN ↓

Busiest routes from SBN

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
SBN → ORD (Chicago)2,73871%29 min
SBN → ATL (Atlanta)1,02978%25 min
SBN → CLT (Charlotte)1,02678%22 min
SBN → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)98473%27 min
SBN → DTW (Detroit)71180%24 min
SBN → MSP (Minneapolis)36586%21 min
SBN → SFB (Sanford)24863%31 min
SBN → PGD (Punta Gorda)23871%27 min
SBN → PIE (St. Petersburg)15171%19 min
SBN → AZA (Phoenix)14770%19 min
SBN → SRQ (Sarasota/Bradenton)10979%16 min
SBN → LAS (Las Vegas)10468%46 min

Compare airlines departing SBN ↓

Where flights into SBN come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORD (Chicago) → SBN2,73767%29 min
ATL (Atlanta) → SBN1,02974%27 min
CLT (Charlotte) → SBN1,02675%18 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → SBN98476%20 min
DTW (Detroit) → SBN71268%30 min
MSP (Minneapolis) → SBN36577%23 min
SFB (Sanford) → SBN24872%19 min
PGD (Punta Gorda) → SBN23880%15 min

Most reliable routes

  1. SBN → MSP86%
  2. SBN → DTW80%
  3. SBN → SRQ79%
  4. SBN → ATL78%
  5. SBN → CLT78%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. SBN → SFB63%
  2. SBN → LAS68%
  3. SBN → AZA70%
  4. SBN → ORD71%
  5. SBN → PIE71%

What causes delays at SBN

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft25%
  • Airline operations46%
  • National airspace system15%
  • Weather14%

Alternative airports near South Bend

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
AZO — Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport54 mi81%21 min
MDW — Chicago Midway International Airport74 mi74%16 min
FWA — Fort Wayne International Airport77 mi77%24 min
ORD — Chicago O'Hare International Airport84 mi75%20 min
GRR — Gerald R. Ford International Airport91 mi81%18 min

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

Airline performance at SBN

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Republic Airways87%11 min337
SkyWest Airlines78%25 min11,040
PSA Airlines78%23 min2,467
Allegiant Air73%26 min2,214

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at SBN?
23% of departures from South Bend International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, with an average departure delay of 24 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from SBN?
Flights scheduled around 6 a.m. depart on time 89% of the time at SBN, versus 53% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at SBN?
In this dataset, December 2025 was the weakest month at SBN, with 65% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at SBN?
1.9% of scheduled departures from SBN were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 16,121 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.