80% of flights leaving Ketchikan (KTN) arrived on time over the past 12 months, 5 points better than the national average of 76%. About 7 flights leave KTN on a typical day; 2.8% were cancelled. 80% 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: 8 p.m. (83% on time). Worst: 5 p.m. (76%).
- Best month: April (88%). Worst: January (71%).
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (65% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: about the same (81% → 80%).
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 KTN: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 56% of the time. About 1 in 19 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 83 three hours or more; 2.8% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early80%
- 15–30 min late6.1%
- 30–60 min late4.9%
- 1–2 hours late2.9%
- 2–3 hours late1.2%
- 3+ hours late1.2%
- Diverted0.5%
- Cancelled2.8%
Share of all 2,404 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of KTN
KTN is unusually consistent through the day. Flights scheduled to leave at 8 p.m. arrived on time 83% of the time; at 5 p.m. it was 76%, a 7-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 82% on time against 78% 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: 5 p.m. departures were cancelled 4.1% of the time, against 2.8% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at KTN was a 9 a.m. departure in November (86% on time); the least, 5 p.m. in August (68%). 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
January is the hardest month at KTN, with 71% of flights on time across 2023–2026; April is the best at 88%. Summer (June–August) runs 6 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Winter costs 7 points against autumn. Cancellations peak in January (9.0% of flights).
Airlines at KTN
Alaska Airlines runs 100% of departures from KTN, so KTN is effectively its hub. When Alaska Airlines has a bad day, so does the airport.
| Airline | Departures | On time | Left on time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines | 2,404 | 80% | 80% | 2.8% | −11 min |
Why flights are late at KTN
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At KTN, 65% 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 22%. 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 68 cancellations, 69% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 11 minutes, shorter than at most large U.S. airports.
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 80% of KTN departures were on time, against 81% in the 12 months before: essentially unchanged. The best recent month was May 2026 (92%); the worst, December 2025 (62%).
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from KTN, each airline's final departure was cancelled 3.9% of the time, against 2.1% for its earlier flights (1.8× 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. 1.1% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was Alaska Airlines to Seattle (3.9% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEA Seattle | Alaska Airlines | 5:23 p.m. | 3.9% | 1.1% | 83% |
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 KTN
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At KTN the 8 p.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in January? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Need to arrive tonight? Don't book the last flight out of KTN; the one before it leaves you a backup.
- Delayed already? Most delays at KTN come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from KTN
Least reliable first. Routes with at least 365 flights a year.
| To | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SIT Sitka | 365 | 70% | 4.4% | −4 min |
| SEA Seattle | 1,316 | 83% | 2.6% | −11 min |
Flights into KTN
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Ketchikan, least reliable first. The weakest is from Seattle (77% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| SEA Seattle | 1,315 | 77% | 0.2% |
Questions about KTN delays
What is the best time to fly out of KTN?
Flights scheduled at 8 p.m.: over the past year 83% of KTN departures at that hour arrived on time, against 76% at 5 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at KTN?
January (71% on time). April is the best month (88%).
Why are flights delayed at KTN?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (65% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the airlines themselves (22%).
How often are flights cancelled at KTN?
2.8% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 9.0%.
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.