Southwest Airlines On-Time Performance and Delays
Ranked 8th of 14 US airlines for on-time arrivals
Data through July 2026 · Last updated October 18, 2026
Southwest Airlines ranked 8th of 14 reporting airlines for punctuality, with 76.4% of flights arriving on time in the last 12 months.
That is 1.2 points below the US average of 77.6%, and 0.9% of its 1,389,951 scheduled flights were cancelled.
Late-arriving aircraft accounted for 51% of reported delay minutes, the largest cause.
Over 24 months, Tuesday was the most reliable day (83% on time) and June the worst month (69%).
Southwest Airlines on-time performance by month
On-time arrival % each month, with the 12-month US average for reference.
Show the numbers
| Month | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay when late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2026 | 69.2% | 1.1% | 56 min | 124,994 |
| June 2026 | 66.0% | 0.6% | 55 min | 120,933 |
| May 2026 | 72.4% | 0.4% | 52 min | 120,646 |
| April 2026 | 77.6% | 0.3% | 46 min | 117,814 |
| March 2026 | 74.4% | 1.6% | 57 min | 122,298 |
| February 2026 | 81.7% | 1.0% | 48 min | 100,783 |
| January 2026 | 84.8% | 2.6% | 47 min | 104,002 |
| December 2025 | 75.4% | 0.6% | 53 min | 118,075 |
| November 2025 | 79.8% | 1.7% | 57 min | 113,938 |
| October 2025 | 77.4% | 0.2% | 49 min | 121,588 |
| September 2025 | 83.0% | 0.2% | 51 min | 110,361 |
| August 2025 | 78.6% | 0.4% | 55 min | 114,519 |
| July 2025 | 71.1% | 1.3% | 66 min | 125,677 |
| June 2025 | 71.8% | 0.6% | 60 min | 122,348 |
| May 2025 | 76.9% | 0.5% | 59 min | 119,819 |
| April 2025 | 81.0% | 0.5% | 57 min | 117,622 |
| March 2025 | 82.4% | 0.8% | 60 min | 122,432 |
| February 2025 | 83.5% | 0.6% | 56 min | 100,199 |
| January 2025 | 84.8% | 2.9% | 52 min | 105,307 |
| December 2024 | 80.5% | 0.5% | 59 min | 116,276 |
| November 2024 | 87.3% | 0.3% | 48 min | 112,591 |
| October 2024 | 86.6% | 1.3% | 46 min | 119,251 |
| September 2024 | 85.5% | 0.4% | 45 min | 112,561 |
| August 2024 | 79.7% | 0.8% | 55 min | 118,338 |
Why Southwest Airlines flights are delayed
Share of reported delay minutes by BTS cause category, last 12 months.
Southwest Airlines: most and least punctual routes
Routes with at least 300 Southwest Airlines flights in the last 12 months, by on-time arrival %.
80%+ good 70–79.9% fair <70% poor
Best time of day to fly Southwest Airlines
On-time arrival % by scheduled departure hour (local time), last 24 months.
Best day of the week to fly Southwest Airlines
On-time arrival % by day of departure, last 24 months.
Southwest Airlines during holiday travel
On-time arrivals during holiday periods compared with all other days, last 24 months.
| Period | On time | vs other days | Cancelled | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving week (Tue before to Mon after) | 81.0% | +0.4 pts | 0.6% | 53,954 |
| Christmas & New Year (Dec 20 - Jan 3) | 73.0% | -7.6 pts | 0.8% | 118,141 |
| Summer peak (Jun 15 - Aug 15) | 70.9% | -9.8 pts | 1.0% | 496,513 |
| All other days | 80.6% | — | 0.9% | 2,113,764 |
Southwest Airlines at its busiest airports
On-time departures from each airport, last 12 months.
| Airport | On-time departures | Cancelled | Departures |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver (DEN) | 64.3% | 0.6% | 88,450 |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 67.6% | 0.6% | 86,313 |
| Baltimore (BWI) | 70.7% | 1.6% | 72,159 |
| Chicago (MDW) | 71.2% | 1.5% | 69,305 |
| Dallas (DAL) | 68.0% | 1.4% | 68,611 |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 68.6% | 0.6% | 67,125 |
| Nashville (BNA) | 66.9% | 0.8% | 62,118 |
| Orlando (MCO) | 68.4% | 1.0% | 50,933 |
| Houston (HOU) | 72.9% | 0.7% | 50,270 |
| St. Louis (STL) | 71.9% | 0.7% | 39,473 |
| Austin (AUS) | 68.5% | 0.6% | 38,365 |
| San Diego (SAN) | 65.1% | 0.9% | 38,266 |
| Sacramento (SMF) | 76.5% | 0.5% | 31,980 |
| Oakland (OAK) | 74.3% | 0.5% | 27,848 |
| San Jose (SJC) | 77.1% | 0.5% | 26,436 |