FlightRecord

Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport (SDF): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport (SDF) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 91% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 75% in July 2024. Across the year it averages 82% against a national 78%, over roughly 63 departures a day to 46 destinations.

Departures on-time
82%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
16 min
Arrivals on-time
78%
Cancelled
2.0%
Destinations
46
nonstop
Airlines
11

Plan your departure from SDF

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

Best departure time
Around 5 a.m.
93% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
84% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Republic Airways
88% on-time from SDF
Cancellation risk
2.0%
above the US average
Check routes from SDF ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at SDF50%75%100%August 2024: 83% on-time (2,057 flights)83Aug 2024September 2024: 87% on-time (2,025 flights)87October 2024: 91% on-time (2,179 flights)91November 2024: 89% on-time (1,904 flights)89Nov 2024December 2024: 83% on-time (1,811 flights)83January 2025: 84% on-time (1,701 flights)84February 2025: 84% on-time (1,574 flights)84Feb 2025March 2025: 86% on-time (1,905 flights)86April 2025: 83% on-time (1,948 flights)83May 2025: 79% on-time (2,125 flights)79May 2025June 2025: 77% on-time (2,114 flights)77July 2025: 77% on-time (2,176 flights)77August 2025: 84% on-time (2,061 flights)84Aug 2025September 2025: 87% on-time (1,929 flights)87October 2025: 84% on-time (2,089 flights)84November 2025: 82% on-time (1,731 flights)82Nov 2025December 2025: 77% on-time (1,686 flights)77January 2026: 84% on-time (1,578 flights)84February 2026: 84% on-time (1,594 flights)84Feb 2026March 2026: 77% on-time (2,009 flights)77April 2026: 84% on-time (2,136 flights)84May 2026: 83% on-time (2,304 flights)83May 2026June 2026: 77% on-time (2,012 flights)77July 2026: 78% on-time (2,015 flights)78

Best time of day to depart from SDF

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at SDF5 a.m.: 93% on-time (1,546 flights)56 a.m.: 92% on-time (6,649 flights)67 a.m.: 91% on-time (5,048 flights)78 a.m.: 90% on-time (3,201 flights)89 a.m.: 90% on-time (1,545 flights)910 a.m.: 86% on-time (3,485 flights)1011 a.m.: 85% on-time (2,714 flights)1112 p.m.: 82% on-time (3,317 flights)121 p.m.: 81% on-time (2,947 flights)132 p.m.: 79% on-time (2,657 flights)143 p.m.: 76% on-time (3,179 flights)154 p.m.: 73% on-time (2,852 flights)165 p.m.: 73% on-time (2,910 flights)176 p.m.: 69% on-time (2,967 flights)187 p.m.: 70% on-time (1,976 flights)198 p.m.: 64% on-time (1,514 flights)209 p.m.: 51% on-time (331 flights)21scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday81%16 min
Tuesdaybest84%13 min
Wednesday84%13 min
Thursday80%17 min
Friday79%19 min
Saturday83%16 min
Sunday77%19 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from SDF ↓

Busiest routes from SDF

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
SDF → ORD (Chicago)2,79680%16 min
SDF → ATL (Atlanta)2,71788%11 min
SDF → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)2,00274%27 min
SDF → CLT (Charlotte)1,75777%24 min
SDF → DTW (Detroit)1,12885%15 min
SDF → DEN (Denver)1,09783%13 min
SDF → LGA (New York)1,03785%10 min
SDF → DCA (Washington)1,02977%23 min
SDF → EWR (Newark)99286%11 min
SDF → MDW (Chicago)97786%10 min
SDF → BWI (Baltimore)89185%10 min
SDF → MCO (Orlando)85681%14 min
SDF → BOS (Boston)70872%19 min
SDF → PHL (Philadelphia)60883%18 min
SDF → MSP (Minneapolis)52783%15 min
SDF → BNA (Nashville)50579%10 min
SDF → MIA (Miami)42982%25 min
SDF → TPA (Tampa)40684%10 min
SDF → LAS (Las Vegas)39981%13 min
SDF → PHX (Phoenix)37282%11 min
SDF → DAL (Dallas)35081%11 min
SDF → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)29672%25 min
SDF → HOU (Houston)28381%12 min
SDF → IAD (Washington)23693%6 min
SDF → PGD (Punta Gorda)15576%22 min
SDF → VPS (Valparaiso)13074%21 min
SDF → SFB (Sanford)12749%61 min
SDF → PIE (St. Petersburg)10970%29 min

Compare airlines departing SDF ↓

Where flights into SDF come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORD (Chicago) → SDF2,79377%17 min
ATL (Atlanta) → SDF2,71782%12 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → SDF2,00172%23 min
CLT (Charlotte) → SDF1,75773%22 min
DTW (Detroit) → SDF1,12881%15 min
DEN (Denver) → SDF1,09674%18 min
LGA (New York) → SDF1,03682%14 min
DCA (Washington) → SDF1,03174%20 min

Most reliable routes

  1. SDF → IAD93%
  2. SDF → ATL88%
  3. SDF → MDW86%
  4. SDF → EWR86%
  5. SDF → BWI85%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. SDF → SFB49%
  2. SDF → PIE70%
  3. SDF → BOS72%
  4. SDF → FLL72%
  5. SDF → DFW74%

What causes delays at SDF

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft36%
  • Airline operations36%
  • National airspace system22%
  • Weather5%

Alternative airports near Louisville

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
LEX — Blue Grass Airport62 mi80%18 min
CVG — Cincinnati Northern Kentucky International Airport84 mi81%16 min
EVV — Evansville Regional Airport98 mi81%21 min
IND — Indianapolis International Airport111 mi82%14 min

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

Airline performance at SDF

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Republic Airways88%9 min12,702
Delta Air Lines87%12 min5,469
United Airlines83%14 min1,504
Southwest Airlines82%12 min10,672
Envoy Air81%13 min2,517
SkyWest Airlines80%20 min3,959
American Airlines78%27 min5,093
Spirit Airlines75%21 min1,280
PSA Airlines75%31 min3,975
Allegiant Air69%33 min1,581

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at SDF?
18% of departures from Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, with an average departure delay of 16 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from SDF?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 93% of the time at SDF, versus 51% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at SDF?
In this dataset, July 2024 was the weakest month at SDF, with 75% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at SDF?
2% of scheduled departures from SDF were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 48,846 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.