75% of flights leaving Asheville (AVL) arrived on time over the past 12 months, right at the national average of 76%. About 37 flights leave AVL on a typical day; 2.5% were cancelled. 76% pushed back from the gate on time, so most of the lateness is already there when the flight leaves the gate.
At a glance
- Best hour to fly: 6 a.m. (87% on time). Worst: 5 p.m. (56%).
- Best month: November (81%). Worst: July (66%).
- Most reliable airline here: Delta Air Lines (80%), vs United Airlines at 70%.
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (43% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: improving (74% → 75%).
How late?
The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for flights leaving AVL: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 46% of the time. About 1 in 10 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 47 three hours or more; 2.5% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early75%
- 15–30 min late6.9%
- 30–60 min late5.7%
- 1–2 hours late5.3%
- 2–3 hours late2.1%
- 3+ hours late2.1%
- Diverted0.3%
- Cancelled2.5%
Share of all 13,647 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of AVL
Time of day matters more at AVL than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 6 a.m. arrived on time 87% of the time; at 5 p.m. it was 56%, a 31-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 85% on time against 61% for the evening bank (5–10 p.m.). Early planes usually start the day at the airport, so they haven't had a chance to pick up delays elsewhere. By evening a late inbound aircraft, a crew running out of duty hours or an afternoon thunderstorm can push one late flight into the next. Cancellations cluster too: 7 p.m. departures were cancelled 6.0% of the time, against 2.5% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at AVL was a 6 a.m. departure in August (91% on time); the least, 5 p.m. in July (38%). If you can only move one thing, move the hour. Departure hour usually shifts the odds more than the month does.
Each cell: on-time rate for that departure hour in that calendar month, 2023–2026. Find your travel month, then look along the row for the greenest hour.
Best and worst months
July is the hardest month at AVL, with 66% of flights on time across 2023–2026; November is the best at 81%. Summer (June–August) runs 9 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Cancellations peak in January (5.4% of flights).
Airlines at AVL
American Airlines runs 40% of departures from AVL. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, Delta Air Lines was the most reliable (80% on time) and United Airlines the least (70%), a 10-point difference. On a route where both fly, that difference is worth more than a small fare gap.
| Airline | Departures | On time | Left on time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines | 5,433 | 74% | 74% | 3.2% | −7 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 3,242 | 80% | 78% | 2.1% | −12 min |
| Allegiant Air | 3,088 | 75% | 79% | 0.7% | −5 min |
| United Airlines | 1,869 | 70% | 75% | 3.9% | −5 min |
Why flights are late at AVL
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At AVL, 43% of delay minutes came from late-arriving aircraft: the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Next is the airlines themselves at 28%. That's why the first flight of the morning is the safest bet: it has no earlier flight to inherit a delay from. Of the 339 cancellations, 68% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 18 minutes, about typical for a large U.S. airport.
AVL vs nearby airports
| Airport | Distance | Departures | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVL Asheville | — | 13,647 | 75% | 2.5% |
| GSP Greenville-Spartanburg | 42 mi | 19,855 | 79% | 2.9% |
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 75% of AVL departures were on time, against 74% in the 12 months before, an improvement of 2 points. The best recent month was April 2026 (82%); the worst, December 2025 (68%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Saturday, Jan 31, 2026, when 100% of 25 scheduled departures were cancelled. Days like that are usually a major storm, a system outage or a holiday peak hitting bad weather. No average predicts them, so on a stormy forecast, check your airline's travel waivers.
| Date | Departures | Cancelled | On time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 31, 2026 | 25 | 100% | 0% |
| Jan 25, 2026 | 33 | 100% | 0% |
| Feb 1, 2026 | 33 | 52% | 9% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | 30 | 50% | 17% |
| Mar 16, 2026 | 35 | 29% | 34% |
| Jan 24, 2026 | 25 | 24% | 60% |
| Jul 21, 2026 | 37 | 22% | 57% |
| Jul 28, 2026 | 35 | 17% | 57% |
| Jun 10, 2026 | 37 | 16% | 59% |
| Feb 23, 2026 | 33 | 15% | 55% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from AVL, each airline's final departure was cancelled 3.9% of the time, against 2.0% for its earlier flights (2.0× as often). Late in the day crews run short on duty hours, aircraft arrive late from elsewhere, and with no later flight to fold passengers into, cancelling is easier for the airline. 3.2% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was United Airlines to Newark (8.7% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EWR Newark | United Airlines | 4:37 p.m. | 8.7% | 7.8% | 60% |
| DCA Washington | American Airlines | 7:48 p.m. | 13.6% | 1.9% | 50% |
| LGA New York | Delta Air Lines | 6:59 p.m. | 6.5% | 2.3% | 50% |
| ORD Chicago | United Airlines | 5:38 p.m. | 5.2% | 3.0% | 46% |
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 5:32 p.m. | 1.4% | 5.9% | 59% |
| ORD Chicago | American Airlines | 6:52 p.m. | 5.3% | 1.7% | 57% |
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | Allegiant Air | 5:46 p.m. | 0.8% | 5.9% | 50% |
| PHL Philadelphia | American Airlines | 7:01 p.m. | 5.5% | 1.0% | 75% |
| PIE St. Petersburg | Allegiant Air | 2:27 p.m. | 0.0% | 5.0% | 67% |
| CLT Charlotte | American Airlines | 6:53 p.m. | 2.2% | 1.9% | 70% |
| ATL Atlanta | Delta Air Lines | 7:45 p.m. | 2.2% | 1.6% | 75% |
| SFB Sanford | Allegiant Air | 1:30 p.m. | 0.0% | 2.1% | 67% |
Each airline's last scheduled departure of the day on a route, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Riskiest first.
Tips for flying out of AVL
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At AVL the 6 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in July? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Choosing between airlines? Delta Air Lines has the better record here.
- Need to arrive tonight? Don't book the last flight out of AVL; the one before it leaves you a backup.
- Delayed already? Most delays at AVL come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from AVL
Where you're going matters too. From AVL, the most reliable busy route was to Atlanta (ATL, 83% on time) and the least reliable to Chicago (ORD, 68%). Flights into congested airports inherit their delays: an air traffic program at the destination holds planes on the ground here.
Least reliable first. Routes with at least 365 flights a year.
| To | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DCA Washington | 518 | 55% | 7.3% | +6 min |
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | 660 | 62% | 1.1% | +3 min |
| LGA New York | 1,009 | 65% | 6.4% | −6 min |
| ORD Chicago | 1,789 | 68% | 3.4% | −3 min |
| DFW Dallas | 719 | 69% | 1.9% | −3 min |
| PIE St. Petersburg | 511 | 73% | 0.8% | −4 min |
| EWR Newark | 591 | 74% | 5.3% | −10 min |
| SFB Sanford | 514 | 75% | 0.6% | −5 min |
| CLT Charlotte | 2,205 | 81% | 2.4% | −10 min |
| DEN Denver | 426 | 82% | 1.2% | −9 min |
| PHL Philadelphia | 615 | 82% | 2.6% | −13 min |
| ATL Atlanta | 2,466 | 83% | 1.4% | −14 min |
Flights into AVL
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Asheville, least reliable first. The weakest is from Fort Lauderdale (59% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | 660 | 59% | 1.1% |
| DCA Washington | 518 | 62% | 5.6% |
| LGA New York | 1,009 | 69% | 4.7% |
| DFW Dallas | 718 | 69% | 1.9% |
| ORD Chicago | 1,788 | 71% | 2.9% |
| SFB Sanford | 513 | 71% | 0.6% |
| EWR Newark | 594 | 72% | 5.6% |
| CLT Charlotte | 2,203 | 77% | 2.5% |
| PIE St. Petersburg | 511 | 77% | 0.6% |
| PHL Philadelphia | 615 | 78% | 2.6% |
| ATL Atlanta | 2,465 | 82% | 1.2% |
| DEN Denver | 427 | 88% | 0.9% |
Questions about AVL delays
What is the best time to fly out of AVL?
Flights scheduled at 6 a.m.: over the past year 87% of AVL departures at that hour arrived on time, against 56% at 5 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at AVL?
July (66% on time). November is the best month (81%).
Which airline is most on time at AVL?
Delta Air Lines: 80% of its AVL departures arrived on time over the past year. United Airlines had the weakest record at 70%.
Why are flights delayed at AVL?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (43% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the airlines themselves (28%).
How often are flights cancelled at AVL?
2.5% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 5.4%.
Hours are scheduled local departure times. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes late at the destination; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Method.