ON TIMEBOARD

RDU → MCO on time

Raleigh-Durham (Raleigh/Durham, NC) to Orlando (Orlando, FL). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
76%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.8%
2,695 flights
Typical arrival
−6 min
median vs schedule
When late
+80 min
average delay
Flights / day
7
3 airlines

76% of flights from Raleigh to Orlando arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is about the typical U.S. route. The 6 a.m. departures ran on time 92% of the time; the 6 p.m. ones 65%. Most reliable airline: Delta Air Lines (80%). 11% 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 RDU → MCO: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 51% of the time. About 1 in 11 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 44 three hours or more; 1.8% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 2,695 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Delta Air Lines1,09280%2.1%−7 min6.9%+72 minDelta Air Lines 94%, Republic Airways 6%
Southwest Airlines84178%1.3%−5 min6.9%+63 minSouthwest Airlines
Frontier Airlines76269%1.8%−5 min13.6%+100 minFrontier 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 RDU). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%5 a.m. departures: too few flights (49 flights)5a6 a.m. departures: 92% on time (236 flights)926a7 a.m. departures: 90% on time (407 flights)907a8 a.m. departures: too few flights (67 flights)8a9 a.m. departures: too few flights (22 flights)9a10 a.m. departures: too few flights (50 flights)10a11 a.m. departures: 83% on time (268 flights)8311anoon departures: 76% on time (239 flights)7612p1 p.m. departures: too few flights (80 flights)1p2 p.m. departures: 70% on time (188 flights)702p3 p.m. departures: too few flights (57 flights)3p4 p.m. departures: too few flights (26 flights)4p5 p.m. departures: 65% on time (275 flights)655p6 p.m. departures: 65% on time (394 flights)656p7 p.m. departures: 65% on time (101 flights)657p8 p.m. departures: too few flights (91 flights)8p9 p.m. departures: too few flights (72 flights)9p10 p.m. departures: too few flights (73 flights)10p
RDU → MCO, 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 AirlinesFrontier Airlines
6 a.m.92%——
7 a.m.85%94%—
11 a.m.85%——
noon76%——
2 p.m.——65%
5 p.m.65%——
6 p.m.72%59%—

Last flight of the day

On RDU → MCO, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 1.8% of the time, against 1.9% for its earlier flights, about the same. It arrived 3+ hours late 3.2% of the time (earlier flights: 1.8%). 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 Lines5:03 p.m.1.1%2.8%2.6%first flight 6:00 a.m.
Frontier Airlines7:80 p.m.3.1%3.7%1.0%first flight 2:31 p.m.
Southwest Airlines6:10 p.m.1.2%3.2%1.5%first flight 7:15 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: November (85%). Worst: August (69%).

40%70%100%Jan: 75% on time (650 flights)75JanFeb: 79% on time (644 flights)79FebMar: 72% on time (783 flights)72MarApr: 83% on time (725 flights)83AprMay: 74% on time (698 flights)74MayJun: 73% on time (682 flights)73JunJul: 70% on time (676 flights)70JulAug: 69% on time (626 flights)69AugSep: 79% on time (628 flights)79SepOct: 84% on time (712 flights)84OctNov: 85% on time (648 flights)85NovDec: 79% on time (668 flights)79Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday40970%2.9%
Tuesday33681%1.2%
Wednesday33384%0.9%
Thursday39479%0.3%
Friday40377%1.0%
Saturday39877%2.3%
Sunday42269%3.5%

Why flights were late

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

Late inbound plane 51%Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 26%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 21%Severe weather 1%

Cancellations: weather 26 · airline 20 · air traffic/airport 2

Month by month

50%75%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 69% on time, 0.5% cancelledOct 2023: 83% on time, 0.4% cancelledNov 2023: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 74% on time, 0.4% cancelledFeb 2024: 80% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2024: 69% on time, 1.1% cancelledApr 2024: 82% on time, 0.8% cancelledMay 2024: 69% on time, 0.4% cancelledJun 2024: 70% on time, 1.2% cancelledJul 2024: 63% on time, 3.7% cancelledAug 2024: 62% on time, 3.3% cancelledSep 2024: 81% on time, 1.9% cancelledOct 2024: 81% on time, 8.8% cancelledNov 2024: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2024: 85% on time, 0.5% cancelledJan 2025: 83% on time, 1.0% cancelledFeb 2025: 80% on time, 1.0% cancelledMar 2025: 79% on time, 1.9% cancelledApr 2025: 85% on time, 0.4% cancelledMay 2025: 76% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2025: 74% on time, 2.3% cancelledJul 2025: 76% on time, 2.8% cancelledAug 2025: 71% on time, 1.4% cancelledSep 2025: 88% on time, 0.5% cancelledOct 2025: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 81% on time, 3.0% cancelledDec 2025: 71% on time, 1.8% cancelledJan 2026: 70% on time, 7.1% cancelledFeb 2026: 76% on time, 0.9% cancelledMar 2026: 70% on time, 3.5% cancelledApr 2026: 82% on time, 0.4% cancelledMay 2026: 76% on time, 0.4% cancelledJun 2026: 76% on time, 0.4% cancelledJul 2026: 70% on time, 1.4% cancelledAug 2026: 73% on time, 2.0% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
RDU → MCO, 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 13377:05 a.m.36589%3.6%−10 minDelta Air Lines
DL 137711:26 a.m.24985%1.6%−8 minDelta Air Lines
F9 11112:31 p.m.17866%1.1%−1 minFrontier Airlines
DL 13195:03 p.m.29768%1.4%−1 minDelta Air Lines
F9 17857:32 p.m.13270%2.3%−7 minFrontier Airlines
F9 12338:14 p.m.22465%3.1%−6 minFrontier Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Mar 16, 202680%4
Jan 25, 202680%8
Jan 31, 2026813%5
Jan 26, 2026714%2
Nov 10, 2025714%2

Questions

How often are flights from RDU to MCO on time?

76% of 2,695 scheduled flights from Raleigh/Durham, NC to Orlando, FL arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 1.8% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly RDU to MCO?

Flights scheduled to leave at 6 a.m. were the most reliable (92% on time). The 6 p.m. departures were the least (65%).

Which airline is most on time from RDU to MCO?

Delta Air Lines: 80% of its 1,092 flights on the route arrived on time. Southwest Airlines: 78%. Frontier Airlines: 69%.

What month has the most delays from RDU to MCO?

August (69% on time). The best month is November (85%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from RDU to MCO more likely to be cancelled?

Not much. Each airline's last RDU–MCO flight of the day was cancelled 1.8% of the time over the past year, against 1.9% 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.