Which US Airports Improved Their On-Time Performance the Most?

By Sharon Ben-Moshe · August 12, 2026

Springfield-Branson National Airport (SGF) posted the biggest on-time gain of any major US airport over the past two years, improving from 77.0% to 79.9% on-time arrivals (+2.9 points). Meanwhile Nashville International (BNA) declined the most, dropping from 80.0% to 73.7% (-6.3 points).

Based on FlightRecord's dataset of 14.1 million US DOT flight records from June 2024 through May 2026, we compared each airport's average on-time percentage in the first 12 months of that window against the second 12 months to see which airports trended up and which trended down.

Key takeaways

SGF (Springfield-Branson, MO) improved the most among airports averaging 500+ flights/month: +2.9 points (77.0% to 79.9%).
BNA (Nashville) declined the most: -6.3 points (80.0% to 73.7%), followed closely by ORD (Chicago O'Hare) at -6.0 points.
Among the busiest US hubs, IAH (Houston) and EWR (Newark) both improved by 1.5-1.6 points despite handling roughly 10,000 flights a month each.
Every airport in the most-declined top 10 dropped by at least 4.7 points, a steeper swing than any improvement in the top 10 gainers.
130 airports averaging over 500 flights per month qualified for this ranking out of the full national dataset.

Which airports improved their on-time performance the most?

Ten airports stand out for meaningful, sustained gains in on-time arrivals between the first and second halves of FlightRecord's 24-month dataset. The list mixes small regional airports with two of the country's largest hubs, showing that improvement isn't limited to low-traffic fields.

1. SGF (Springfield-Branson National, Springfield, MO) — 77.0% to 79.9% on-time (+2.9 points), ~767 flights/month
2. IAH (George Bush Intercontinental, Houston, TX) — 76.7% to 78.3% (+1.6 points), ~9,837 flights/month
3. MAF (Midland International Air and Space Port, Midland/Odessa, TX) — 82.9% to 84.5% (+1.6 points), ~798 flights/month
4. EWR (Newark Liberty International, Newark, NJ) — 77.7% to 79.2% (+1.5 points), ~10,294 flights/month
5. FAT (Fresno Yosemite International, Fresno, CA) — 82.5% to 83.8% (+1.3 points), ~1,068 flights/month
6. EYW (Key West International, Key West, FL) — 76.3% to 77.5% (+1.2 points), ~662 flights/month
7. AVL (Asheville Regional, Asheville, NC) — 77.1% to 78.2% (+1.1 points), ~887 flights/month
8. HSV (Huntsville International, Huntsville, AL) — 76.9% to 78.0% (+1.0 point), ~705 flights/month
9. PGD (Punta Gorda Airport, Punta Gorda, FL) — 78.6% to 79.5% (+0.9 points), ~615 flights/month
10. PSC (Tri-Cities Airport, Pasco/Kennewick/Richland, WA) — 88.1% to 88.9% (+0.8 points), ~508 flights/month

Notably, IAH and EWR are both among the country's busiest hubs, so their gains happened while handling large and, in EWR's case, growing traffic volumes. For a current snapshot of which airports have the strongest on-time rates overall (independent of trend), see our most reliable airports ranking.

Which airports declined the most in on-time performance?

The most-declined list is dominated by large hubs, and the swings are considerably steeper than any of the gains above. Nashville's 6.3-point drop is the largest change, up or down, of any airport in the qualifying set.

1. BNA (Nashville International, Nashville, TN) — 80.0% to 73.7% (-6.3 points), ~8,749 flights/month
2. ORD (Chicago O'Hare International, Chicago, IL) — 78.5% to 72.6% (-6.0 points), ~26,892 flights/month
3. LGA (LaGuardia Airport, New York, NY) — 81.7% to 75.7% (-5.9 points), ~11,988 flights/month
4. DAL (Dallas Love Field, Dallas, TX) — 75.9% to 70.3% (-5.6 points), ~5,953 flights/month
5. ITO (Hilo International, Hilo, HI) — 91.3% to 86.0% (-5.3 points), ~555 flights/month
6. OGG (Kahului/Maui International, Kahului, HI) — 89.5% to 84.4% (-5.1 points), ~2,160 flights/month
7. BTV (Patrick Leahy Burlington International, Burlington, VT) — 83.7% to 78.6% (-5.1 points), ~601 flights/month
8. DCA (Ronald Reagan Washington National, Washington, DC) — 78.2% to 73.4% (-4.8 points), ~11,803 flights/month
9. OAK (Oakland/San Francisco Bay, Oakland, CA) — 82.1% to 77.4% (-4.8 points), ~2,964 flights/month
10. MDW (Chicago Midway International, Chicago, IL) — 78.0% to 73.3% (-4.7 points), ~6,272 flights/month

Five of the ten most-declined airports are major connecting hubs (ORD, LGA, DCA, DAL, MDW), while two are Hawaii airports (ITO, OGG). See our most delayed airports ranking for a current point-in-time view of which airports run the latest overall.

Why might an airport's on-time rate move up or down over time?

FlightRecord's dataset tracks the outcome — arrival delay — not the cause, so we can't attribute any single airport's swing to a specific reason. In general, though, airport-level on-time rates can shift for a handful of broad, non-airport-specific reasons: traffic growth outpacing runway or gate capacity, schedule padding or de-padding by airlines serving that airport, a shift in the mix of connecting versus origin-and-destination traffic, seasonal weather patterns that vary year to year, and changes in air traffic control staffing or procedures at a given facility. None of these are confirmed explanations for any airport on this list — they're the general categories worth knowing about when interpreting a multi-year trend.

How did FlightRecord calculate this ranking?

We used FlightRecord's airport_monthly aggregate table, which spans 24 months from June 2024 through May 2026. For each airport, we calculated the average on-time percentage across the first 12 months (June 2024-May 2025) and the average across the last 12 months (June 2025-May 2026), then ranked airports by the point change between those two periods.

To keep the comparison meaningful, we only included airports averaging more than 500 flights per month over the full window — well above FlightRecord's general minimum sample threshold of 30 flights. That left 130 qualifying airports out of the full national set. Smaller airports were excluded because a handful of bad-weather days or a single schedule change can swing a low-volume airport's percentage by several points without reflecting any real change in performance.

On-time is defined the standard DOT way: arrived less than 15 minutes after schedule. Cancelled and diverted flights are excluded from these delay averages, consistent with the rest of the site — see our full methodology page for details on how every FlightRecord statistic is calculated.

This airport-level breakdown is a companion to our look at whether flying is getting more or less reliable nationally over time — that post covers the national on-time trend; this one drills into which individual airports are driving movement in either direction.

If you're also curious whether regional carriers fly less reliably than mainline airlines, see our regional vs. mainline comparison, or check out our look at whether flight direction changes your odds of a delay.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which airport improved its on-time rate the most?

Springfield-Branson National Airport (SGF) in Missouri improved the most among airports averaging over 500 flights a month, rising from a 77.0% on-time rate in the first half of FlightRecord's 24-month window to 79.9% in the second half, a gain of 2.9 percentage points.

Which airport declined the most in on-time performance?

Nashville International Airport (BNA) saw the steepest decline, dropping from an 80.0% on-time rate to 73.7%, a fall of 6.3 percentage points between the first and second 12-month periods of the dataset. Chicago O'Hare (ORD) was close behind at -6.0 points.

Did any large hub airports improve?

Yes. Houston's George Bush Intercontinental (IAH) and Newark Liberty (EWR) both improved by 1.5-1.6 points despite each averaging roughly 10,000 flights a month, showing that on-time gains aren't limited to small, low-traffic airports.

How many airports were included in this ranking?

130 US airports qualified, defined as those averaging more than 500 flights per month across FlightRecord's full 24-month dataset (June 2024-May 2026). Lower-volume airports were excluded because small sample sizes can produce misleading percentage swings.

Does a past on-time trend predict whether my specific flight will be on time?

No. These trends reflect two-year averages across an entire airport's traffic, not any single flight. A specific flight's odds depend on its date, time, airline, and same-day conditions, so treat airport-level trends as useful context rather than a guarantee for one trip.

What counts as "on-time" in this data?

FlightRecord uses the US DOT standard: a flight is on-time if it arrives less than 15 minutes after its scheduled arrival time. Cancelled and diverted flights are tracked separately and excluded from these on-time and delay percentages.

A closing note on using this data

These rankings describe a real, measured two-year trend at each airport — they aren't a forecast. An airport that improved over the last 24 months can still have a bad month, and one that declined can still run smoothly on any given day. Use this as a general reliability signal alongside route- and flight-specific data, not as a substitute for checking your actual flight's own track record.