FlightRecord

McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 89% on-time in November 2024 but sank to 70% in December 2025. Across the year it averages 80% against a national 78%, over roughly 37 departures a day to 41 destinations.

Departures on-time
80%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
19 min
Arrivals on-time
74%
Cancelled
2.0%
Destinations
41
nonstop
Airlines
11

Plan your departure from TYS

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

Best departure time
Around 9 a.m.
91% on-time
Best day to fly
Tuesday
82% on-time
Most reliable airline here
Endeavor Air
90% on-time from TYS
Cancellation risk
2.0%
above the US average
Check routes from TYS ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at TYS50%75%100%June 2024: 82% on-time (1,467 flights)82Jun 2024July 2024: 77% on-time (1,550 flights)77August 2024: 83% on-time (1,477 flights)83September 2024: 85% on-time (1,406 flights)85Sep 2024October 2024: 88% on-time (1,691 flights)88November 2024: 89% on-time (1,406 flights)89December 2024: 80% on-time (1,388 flights)80Dec 2024January 2025: 80% on-time (962 flights)80February 2025: 79% on-time (912 flights)79March 2025: 81% on-time (1,170 flights)81Mar 2025April 2025: 82% on-time (1,057 flights)82May 2025: 77% on-time (1,131 flights)77June 2025: 72% on-time (1,227 flights)72Jun 2025July 2025: 72% on-time (1,243 flights)72August 2025: 79% on-time (1,174 flights)79September 2025: 82% on-time (1,097 flights)82Sep 2025October 2025: 77% on-time (1,277 flights)77November 2025: 78% on-time (1,048 flights)78December 2025: 70% on-time (969 flights)70Dec 2025January 2026: 78% on-time (921 flights)78February 2026: 81% on-time (816 flights)81March 2026: 78% on-time (1,119 flights)78Mar 2026April 2026: 86% on-time (1,152 flights)86May 2026: 81% on-time (1,308 flights)81

Best time of day to depart from TYS

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at TYS5 a.m.: 91% on-time (1,612 flights)56 a.m.: 91% on-time (2,638 flights)67 a.m.: 88% on-time (3,229 flights)78 a.m.: 89% on-time (1,974 flights)89 a.m.: 91% on-time (1,040 flights)910 a.m.: 83% on-time (1,608 flights)1011 a.m.: 81% on-time (1,840 flights)1112 p.m.: 83% on-time (2,264 flights)121 p.m.: 78% on-time (1,265 flights)132 p.m.: 78% on-time (1,748 flights)143 p.m.: 71% on-time (971 flights)154 p.m.: 76% on-time (2,576 flights)165 p.m.: 72% on-time (2,564 flights)176 p.m.: 63% on-time (1,676 flights)187 p.m.: 61% on-time (1,025 flights)198 p.m.: 71% on-time (450 flights)209 p.m.: 51% on-time (335 flights)2110 p.m.: 60% on-time (148 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday78%22 min
Tuesdaybest82%16 min
Wednesday81%17 min
Thursday80%19 min
Friday78%20 min
Saturday79%21 min
Sunday76%22 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from TYS ↓

Busiest routes from TYS

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
TYS → ORD (Chicago)2,23174%25 min
TYS → ATL (Atlanta)1,72388%11 min
TYS → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)1,70377%25 min
TYS → DCA (Washington)1,02172%29 min
TYS → DEN (Denver)93885%12 min
TYS → CLT (Charlotte)84978%23 min
TYS → SFB (Sanford)64072%24 min
TYS → PIE (St. Petersburg)51775%22 min
TYS → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)48465%28 min
TYS → MIA (Miami)47882%17 min
TYS → PHL (Philadelphia)32484%16 min
TYS → LGA (New York)28982%17 min
TYS → PGD (Punta Gorda)22271%23 min
TYS → MCO (Orlando)20883%18 min
TYS → BNA (Nashville)17581%8 min
TYS → BOS (Boston)16390%6 min
TYS → EWR (Newark)15388%8 min
TYS → VPS (Valparaiso)13282%16 min
TYS → PHX (Phoenix)12781%14 min
TYS → LAS (Las Vegas)11878%19 min
TYS → JAX (Jacksonville)10482%12 min
TYS → SRQ (Sarasota/Bradenton)10485%15 min

Compare airlines departing TYS ↓

Where flights into TYS come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
ORD (Chicago) → TYS2,23171%27 min
ATL (Atlanta) → TYS1,72182%12 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → TYS1,70269%24 min
DCA (Washington) → TYS1,02269%28 min
DEN (Denver) → TYS93878%16 min
CLT (Charlotte) → TYS84873%20 min
SFB (Sanford) → TYS64067%25 min
PIE (St. Petersburg) → TYS51772%23 min

Most reliable routes

  1. TYS → BOS90%
  2. TYS → ATL88%
  3. TYS → EWR88%
  4. TYS → SRQ85%
  5. TYS → DEN85%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. TYS → FLL65%
  2. TYS → PGD71%
  3. TYS → SFB72%
  4. TYS → DCA72%
  5. TYS → ORD74%

What causes delays at TYS

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

  • Late-arriving aircraft40%
  • Airline operations34%
  • National airspace system17%
  • Weather9%

Alternative airports near Knoxville

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
AVL — Asheville Regional Airport86 mi77%21 min
CHA — Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (Lovell Field)87 mi79%22 min
TRI — Tri-Cities Regional TN/VA Airport100 mi80%20 min
GSP — Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport118 mi82%16 min

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

Airline performance at TYS

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Endeavor Air90%9 min1,882
United Airlines88%10 min1,135
Delta Air Lines85%12 min3,175
Republic Airways84%16 min1,534
SkyWest Airlines84%17 min2,535
Southwest Airlines83%10 min454
Envoy Air82%12 min1,635
Allegiant Air78%20 min6,657
PSA Airlines77%26 min6,523
American Airlines73%29 min3,123
Frontier Airlines71%25 min315

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at TYS?
20% of departures from McGhee Tyson Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, with an average departure delay of 19 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from TYS?
Flights scheduled around 9 a.m. depart on time 91% of the time at TYS, versus 51% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at TYS?
In this dataset, December 2025 was the weakest month at TYS, with 70% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at TYS?
2% of scheduled departures from TYS were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 28,968 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.