77% of flights leaving Tampa (TPA) arrived on time over the past 12 months, right at the national average of 76%. That ranks 40 of 76 large U.S. airports. About 209 flights leave TPA on a typical day; 1.6% 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: 5 a.m. (92% on time). Worst: 9 p.m. (58%).
- Best month: November (84%). Worst: July (67%).
- Most reliable airline here: United Airlines (81%), vs Spirit Airlines at 70%.
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (47% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: about the same (77% → 77%).
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 TPA: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 53% of the time. About 1 in 13 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 62 three hours or more; 1.6% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early77%
- 15–30 min late7.5%
- 30–60 min late6.2%
- 1–2 hours late4.5%
- 2–3 hours late1.6%
- 3+ hours late1.6%
- Diverted0.3%
- Cancelled1.6%
Share of all 76,362 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of TPA
Time of day matters more at TPA than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 5 a.m. arrived on time 92% of the time; at 9 p.m. it was 58%, a 34-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 90% on time against 63% 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: 9 p.m. departures were cancelled 3.2% of the time, against 1.6% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at TPA was a 6 a.m. departure in November (95% on time); the least, 6 p.m. in July (44%). 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 TPA, with 67% of flights on time across 2023–2026; November is the best at 84%. Summer (June–August) runs 12 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Winter costs 4 points against autumn. Cancellations peak in October (3.6% of flights).
Airlines at TPA
Southwest Airlines runs 31% of departures from TPA. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, United Airlines was the most reliable (81% on time) and Spirit Airlines the least (70%), a 11-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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 23,749 | 76% | 73% | 1.0% | −3 min |
| American Airlines | 14,973 | 76% | 76% | 2.0% | −8 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 14,147 | 79% | 79% | 1.8% | −9 min |
| United Airlines | 8,554 | 81% | 84% | 0.9% | −9 min |
| Frontier Airlines | 6,533 | 76% | 78% | 2.0% | −8 min |
| JetBlue | 5,131 | 71% | 72% | 3.5% | −4 min |
| Spirit Airlines | 2,289 | 70% | 73% | 3.8% | −4 min |
| Alaska Airlines | 986 | 73% | 75% | 0.9% | −1 min |
Why flights are late at TPA
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At TPA, 47% 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 27%. 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 1,251 cancellations, 56% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 16 minutes, about typical for a large U.S. airport.
TPA vs nearby airports
TPA isn't the only option in Tampa. Over the past year PIE ran 76% on time with 0.6% of flights cancelled; SRQ ran 79% on time with 1.7% of flights cancelled, against 77% and 1.6% at TPA. On-time rates are close, but PIE cancels noticeably fewer flights, which counts most when a missed day matters.
| Airport | Distance | Departures | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TPA Tampa | — | 76,362 | 77% | 1.6% |
| PIE St. Petersburg Clearwater | 10 mi | 9,002 | 76% | 0.6% |
| SRQ Sarasota Bradenton | 40 mi | 17,464 | 79% | 1.7% |
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 77% of TPA departures were on time, against 77% in the 12 months before: essentially unchanged. The best recent month was September 2025 (87%); the worst, July 2026 (70%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Sunday, Jan 25, 2026, when 45% of 220 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 25, 2026 | 220 | 45% | 36% |
| Mar 16, 2026 | 252 | 39% | 21% |
| Feb 23, 2026 | 239 | 22% | 66% |
| Jan 26, 2026 | 205 | 20% | 42% |
| Feb 22, 2026 | 246 | 16% | 52% |
| Jan 24, 2026 | 189 | 15% | 70% |
| Mar 17, 2026 | 234 | 15% | 38% |
| Jan 27, 2026 | 183 | 14% | 57% |
| Nov 9, 2025 | 233 | 13% | 44% |
| Jul 21, 2026 | 192 | 10% | 67% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from TPA, each airline's final departure was cancelled 2.0% of the time, against 1.6% for its earlier flights, about the same. 2.2% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was JetBlue to New York (5.8% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JFK New York | JetBlue | 7:08 p.m. | 5.8% | 3.6% | 56% |
| PHL Philadelphia | American Airlines | 6:03 p.m. | 4.1% | 4.9% | 55% |
| LGA New York | JetBlue | — | 3.1% | 5.6% | 55% |
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 7:49 p.m. | 5.2% | 2.5% | 54% |
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | Spirit Airlines | — | 5.8% | 1.2% | 59% |
| DTW Detroit | Spirit Airlines | — | 6.4% | 0.6% | 66% |
| LGA New York | Delta Air Lines | 6:44 p.m. | 3.8% | 2.7% | 59% |
| BOS Boston | JetBlue | 4:58 p.m. | 3.6% | 3.0% | 56% |
| EWR Newark | United Airlines | 5:45 p.m. | 2.5% | 4.1% | 65% |
| DCA Washington | American Airlines | 7:03 p.m. | 3.0% | 3.3% | 56% |
| PHL Philadelphia | Frontier Airlines | 10:30 p.m. | 3.6% | 2.6% | 65% |
| JFK New York | Delta Air Lines | 7:59 p.m. | 3.6% | 2.5% | 65% |
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.
TPA at the holidays
On the busy Thanksgiving travel days, flights from TPA arrived on time 77% of the time, against 86% normally (−8.2 points; 13th of the 30 busiest airports). On the busy Christmas–New Year travel days, flights from TPA arrived on time 71% of the time, against 80% normally (−8.6 points; 21th of the 30 busiest airports).
Thanksgiving: best days to fly → · Christmas: best days to fly →
Tips for flying out of TPA
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At TPA the 5 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? United Airlines has the better record here.
- Connecting here? See how long a layover you need at TPA.
- Delayed already? Most delays at TPA come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Delayed at TPA right now? See how much later TPA delays usually get, and what to do →
Routes from TPA
Where you're going matters too. From TPA, the most reliable busy route was to Houston (IAH, 86% on time) and the least reliable to Fort Lauderdale (FLL, 70%). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PVD Providence | 437 | 68% | 0.9% | +1 min |
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | 1,410 | 70% | 3.2% | −4 min |
| SJU San Juan | 1,561 | 71% | 1.8% | +1 min |
| LGA New York | 2,764 | 71% | 3.3% | −5 min |
| BDL Hartford | 652 | 71% | 1.7% | +1 min |
| ORD Chicago | 3,171 | 71% | 1.6% | −3 min |
| MKE Milwaukee | 471 | 72% | 1.5% | −2 min |
| BOS Boston | 2,784 | 72% | 3.2% | −5 min |
| DCA Washington | 2,249 | 72% | 2.5% | −5 min |
| PHL Philadelphia | 2,659 | 72% | 2.4% | −6 min |
| MDW Chicago | 1,554 | 73% | 2.2% | 0 min |
| SAN San Diego | 656 | 73% | 0.5% | −4 min |
| SEA Seattle | 975 | 73% | 0.9% | 0 min |
| DFW Dallas | 2,917 | 73% | 3.0% | −7 min |
| ISP Islip | 430 | 73% | 2.8% | −3 min |
| BNA Nashville | 2,487 | 74% | 1.0% | −1 min |
| CVG Cincinnati | 746 | 74% | 0.8% | −9 min |
| DAL Dallas | 1,291 | 75% | 1.5% | −3 min |
| PIT Pittsburgh | 814 | 75% | 0.7% | −4 min |
| JFK New York | 2,307 | 75% | 4.2% | −6 min |
| EWR Newark | 2,506 | 77% | 2.0% | −8 min |
| CLE Cleveland | 1,048 | 77% | 1.2% | −9 min |
| SAT San Antonio | 367 | 77% | 0.5% | −8 min |
| MIA Miami | 2,924 | 78% | 1.1% | −8 min |
| MCI Kansas City | 655 | 78% | 0.6% | −3 min |
| LAS Las Vegas | 1,028 | 78% | 1.1% | −5 min |
| ATL Atlanta | 6,200 | 78% | 1.4% | −9 min |
| BUF Buffalo | 711 | 78% | 1.3% | −3 min |
| MSY New Orleans | 1,051 | 78% | 0.9% | −6 min |
| HOU Houston | 1,032 | 78% | 0.5% | −6 min |
| BHM Birmingham | 421 | 79% | 0.2% | −4 min |
| AUS Austin | 1,560 | 79% | 0.7% | −8 min |
| DTW Detroit | 2,292 | 80% | 1.8% | −7 min |
| CMH Columbus | 907 | 80% | 1.2% | −7 min |
| PHX Phoenix | 1,213 | 80% | 0.4% | −6 min |
| RDU Raleigh | 1,294 | 80% | 1.8% | −9 min |
| BWI Baltimore | 2,626 | 80% | 1.8% | −7 min |
| DEN Denver | 3,089 | 80% | 0.4% | −7 min |
| IND Indianapolis | 928 | 81% | 1.0% | −7 min |
| MSP Minneapolis | 1,168 | 81% | 0.9% | −6 min |
| SFO San Francisco | 688 | 82% | 0.1% | −7 min |
| CLT Charlotte | 3,037 | 82% | 1.6% | −10 min |
| STL St. Louis | 1,237 | 83% | 0.6% | −8 min |
| LAX Los Angeles | 1,165 | 83% | 0.9% | −8 min |
| IAD Washington | 1,288 | 85% | 1.0% | −10 min |
| SDF Louisville | 404 | 85% | 0.5% | −7 min |
| IAH Houston | 1,523 | 86% | 0.5% | −14 min |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 368 | 90% | 0.3% | −10 min |
Flights into TPA
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Tampa, least reliable first. The weakest is from Dallas (65% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| DFW Dallas | 2,917 | 65% | 2.9% |
| LAS Las Vegas | 1,018 | 67% | 0.9% |
| LGA New York | 2,763 | 68% | 3.3% |
| ISP Islip | 433 | 68% | 3.9% |
| PHX Phoenix | 1,217 | 69% | 0.4% |
| DAL Dallas | 1,273 | 70% | 0.9% |
| FLL Fort Lauderdale | 1,412 | 71% | 2.2% |
| MIA Miami | 2,927 | 71% | 1.1% |
| PHL Philadelphia | 2,660 | 71% | 2.3% |
| ORD Chicago | 3,174 | 72% | 1.5% |
| BNA Nashville | 2,479 | 72% | 0.9% |
| DCA Washington | 2,248 | 72% | 2.6% |
| ATL Atlanta | 6,204 | 72% | 1.3% |
| BOS Boston | 2,780 | 72% | 3.1% |
| JFK New York | 2,310 | 73% | 4.2% |
| HOU Houston | 1,010 | 73% | 0.4% |
| BDL Hartford | 652 | 74% | 1.7% |
| BHM Birmingham | 421 | 74% | 0.5% |
| AUS Austin | 1,555 | 75% | 0.6% |
| MDW Chicago | 1,569 | 75% | 1.3% |
| CLT Charlotte | 3,038 | 75% | 1.6% |
| SJU San Juan | 1,562 | 75% | 1.9% |
| MSY New Orleans | 1,051 | 76% | 1.1% |
| BWI Baltimore | 2,651 | 76% | 2.0% |
| DEN Denver | 3,100 | 77% | 0.5% |
Showing the 25 least reliable of 48 routes into TPA.
Questions about TPA delays
What is the best time to fly out of TPA?
Flights scheduled at 5 a.m.: over the past year 92% of TPA departures at that hour arrived on time, against 58% at 9 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at TPA?
July (67% on time). November is the best month (84%).
Which airline is most on time at TPA?
United Airlines: 81% of its TPA departures arrived on time over the past year. Spirit Airlines had the weakest record at 70%.
Why are flights delayed at TPA?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (47% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the airlines themselves (27%).
Is TPA or PIE or SRQ more reliable?
Over the past year: TPA 77% on time, PIE 76%, SRQ 79%.
How often are flights cancelled at TPA?
1.6% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in October at 3.6%.
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.