ON TIMEBOARD

ATL → BNA on time

Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson (Atlanta, GA) to Nashville (Nashville, TN). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
78%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.6%
4,259 flights
Typical arrival
−5 min
median vs schedule
When late
+59 min
average delay
Flights / day
12
2 airlines

78% of flights from Atlanta to Nashville arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is about the typical U.S. route. The 8 a.m. departures ran on time 90% of the time; the 7 p.m. ones 67%. Most reliable airline: Delta Air Lines (79%). 8% of flights arrived more than an hour late or not at all.

How late?

The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for ATL → BNA: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 57% of the time. About 1 in 15 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 109 three hours or more; 1.6% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 4,259 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Delta Air Lines3,37079%1.9%−5 min5.7%+56 minDelta Air Lines 100%, Endeavor Air 0%
Southwest Airlines88976%0.6%−4 min9.4%+69 minSouthwest Airlines

Airline = the name on the ticket. Regional flights (e.g. "Delta Connection") count under the ticketing airline, and the operator is listed.

Best time of day to fly

On-time rate by scheduled departure hour (local time at ATL). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%6 a.m. departures: too few flights (27 flights)6a7 a.m. departures: 89% on time (203 flights)897a8 a.m. departures: 90% on time (368 flights)908a9 a.m. departures: 87% on time (260 flights)879a10 a.m. departures: 87% on time (233 flights)8710a11 a.m. departures: 87% on time (298 flights)8711anoon departures: 80% on time (104 flights)8012p1 p.m. departures: 84% on time (331 flights)841p2 p.m. departures: 69% on time (166 flights)692p3 p.m. departures: 73% on time (375 flights)733p4 p.m. departures: 77% on time (209 flights)774p5 p.m. departures: 77% on time (237 flights)775p6 p.m. departures: 67% on time (311 flights)676p7 p.m. departures: 67% on time (236 flights)677p8 p.m. departures: 69% on time (388 flights)698p9 p.m. departures: 67% on time (148 flights)679p10 p.m. departures: 78% on time (228 flights)7810p11 p.m. departures: 74% on time (137 flights)7411p
ATL → BNA, share of flights arriving on time, by departure hour. Hours with under 100 flights are greyed out.
82%+ on time76–82%68–76%under 68%too few flights

By airline and hour

DepartsDelta Air LinesSouthwest Airlines
7 a.m.89%—
8 a.m.90%—
9 a.m.86%—
10 a.m.82%93%
11 a.m.88%—
1 p.m.83%—
3 p.m.73%—
4 p.m.78%—
5 p.m.72%—
6 p.m.67%—
7 p.m.73%57%
8 p.m.72%—
9 p.m.72%—
10 p.m.78%—
11 p.m.74%—

Last flight of the day

On ATL → BNA, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 1.9% of the time, against 1.6% for its earlier flights, about the same. It arrived 3+ hours late 1.9% of the time (earlier flights: 0.8%). It matters more than the numbers suggest. Miss an earlier flight and there's another one that evening; miss the last one and you're usually waiting until morning.

AirlineLast departureLast: cancelledLast: 3h+ lateEarlier: cancelledNext morning
Delta Air Lines11:00 p.m.3.0%1.4%1.8%first flight 7:30 a.m.
Southwest Airlines8:30 p.m.0.6%2.6%0.6%first flight 7:10 a.m.

Last flight = the airline's last scheduled departure on this route that day, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Times are typical scheduled times over the latest three months.

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: September (88%). Worst: July (67%).

40%70%100%Jan: 77% on time (851 flights)77JanFeb: 87% on time (831 flights)87FebMar: 81% on time (1,002 flights)81MarApr: 83% on time (1,033 flights)83AprMay: 75% on time (1,105 flights)75MayJun: 78% on time (1,064 flights)78JunJul: 67% on time (1,085 flights)67JulAug: 82% on time (1,028 flights)82AugSep: 88% on time (972 flights)88SepOct: 88% on time (1,027 flights)88OctNov: 86% on time (950 flights)86NovDec: 81% on time (980 flights)81Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday66476%1.4%
Tuesday60780%0.3%
Wednesday59688%0.2%
Thursday64577%0.6%
Friday65376%1.4%
Saturday48979%3.9%
Sunday60572%4.1%

Why flights were late

Share of delay minutes on flights 15+ minutes late, as reported to BTS by the airlines.

Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 38%Late inbound plane 33%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 23%Severe weather 6%

Cancellations: airline 44 · weather 25

Month by month

50%75%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2023: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2023: 93% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 77% on time, 3.7% cancelledFeb 2024: 93% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2024: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2024: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2024: 73% on time, 0.3% cancelledJun 2024: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2024: 62% on time, 5.3% cancelledAug 2024: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2024: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2024: 93% on time, 0.3% cancelledNov 2024: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2024: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2025: 75% on time, 3.6% cancelledFeb 2025: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2025: 85% on time, 0.3% cancelledApr 2025: 79% on time, 1.2% cancelledMay 2025: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2025: 67% on time, 2.1% cancelledJul 2025: 74% on time, 0.3% cancelledAug 2025: 85% on time, 1.1% cancelledSep 2025: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2025: 80% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 77% on time, 3.0% cancelledDec 2025: 75% on time, 1.7% cancelledJan 2026: 79% on time, 6.0% cancelledFeb 2026: 84% on time, 0.4% cancelledMar 2026: 74% on time, 2.8% cancelledApr 2026: 83% on time, 1.8% cancelledMay 2026: 75% on time, 2.5% cancelledJun 2026: 84% on time, 0.3% cancelledJul 2026: 64% on time, 1.2% cancelledAug 2026: 77% on time, 0.3% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
ATL → BNA, monthly on-time and cancellation rate.

Flight numbers on this route

Regular flights with at least 120 scheduled trips in the past year. Sorted by departure time.

FlightDepartsFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrivalOperated by
DL 30698:31 a.m.32590%2.1%−10 minDelta Air Lines
DL 11559:50 a.m.22786%1.8%−7 minDelta Air Lines
DL 286711:21 a.m.13887%1.5%−8 minDelta Air Lines
DL 31423:13 p.m.20673%1.5%0 minDelta Air Lines
DL 16934:54 p.m.25375%2.0%0 minDelta Air Lines
DL 31595:21 p.m.19580%1.5%−4 minDelta Air Lines
DL 14906:59 p.m.26870%2.2%0 minDelta Air Lines
DL 7907:40 p.m.16467%0.6%−2 minDelta Air Lines
DL 30028:25 p.m.24973%1.6%−4 minDelta Air Lines
DL 312111:00 p.m.25575%3.9%−7 minDelta Air Lines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Dec 7, 2025130%2
Mar 16, 2026130%3
Apr 28, 2026138%1
Jan 25, 2026119%8
Mar 7, 2026911%1

Questions

How often are flights from ATL to BNA on time?

78% of 4,259 scheduled flights from Atlanta, GA to Nashville, TN arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 1.6% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly ATL to BNA?

Flights scheduled to leave at 8 a.m. were the most reliable (90% on time). The 7 p.m. departures were the least (67%).

Which airline is most on time from ATL to BNA?

Delta Air Lines: 79% of its 3,370 flights on the route arrived on time. Southwest Airlines: 76%.

What month has the most delays from ATL to BNA?

July (67% on time). The best month is September (88%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from ATL to BNA more likely to be cancelled?

Not much. Each airline's last ATL–BNA flight of the day was cancelled 1.9% of the time over the past year, against 1.6% for its earlier flights. If the last flight is cancelled, the next one is usually the following morning.

Related

Domestic flights by the airlines that report to the U.S. DOT, plus their regional partners. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes after schedule; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Past performance is a guide, not a forecast. Method.