Best time to fly out of Mesa Gateway (AZA)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Mesa Gateway: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 94.7% of the time, against 61.3% in the 8–10pm band. These are historical odds, not forecasts. The records say what happened on this schedule over three years; they know nothing about tomorrow’s thunderstorm.

Data through June 2026 · Bureau of Transportation Statistics

On-time rate by hour and day

On this page, “on time” means a departure that pushed back less than 15 minutes behind its scheduled time — the Bureau of Transportation Statistics definition, and the one airlines are held to.

Share of departures that left on time, by hour band and day of week.
Departure time MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
Before 6am – – – – – – –
6–8am 96 94 93 94 95 95 95
8–10am 93 93 92 90 91 90 92
10am–12pm 87 94 89 86 85 89 84
12–2pm 90 88 79 79 84 80 83
2–4pm 80 76 83 77 78 78 77
4–6pm 73 71 73 77 73 75 75
6–8pm 70 – – 67 65 70 71
8–10pm – – – 55 – – 67
10pm–12am – – – – – – –
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at AZA was 6–8am — 94.7% of departures left on time across 3,692 flights. The weakest was 8–10pm at 61.3%. 6–8am departures from AZA left on time 94.7% of the time across 3,692 flights; 6–8pm departures, 68.5% across 807. That is a gap of 26.2 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at AZA

December was the hard month at AZA: 81.4% of departures left on time, across 1,763 flights. February was the easy one at 87.7%. Each month pools three years of that month, so a single bad week does not decide it.

Share of departures that left on time, by calendar month. Best month in green, worst in amber. The hairline sits at the overall rate, 84.1%.
Departure on-time share at AZA by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 82.9% 1,588
February 87.7% 1,553
March 84.4% 2,235
April 83.2% 1,607
May 86% 1,446
June 82.8% 1,544
July 82.8% 1,524
August 82.6% 1,141
September 87.6% 931
October 84.3% 1,510
November 84.9% 1,504
December 81.4% 1,763

Airlines at AZA

Every airline with at least 100 departures from AZA, busiest first. These are that airline’s departures from this airport only — its record across the country sits on its own page.

Airline Left on time Typical delay Cancelled Departures
Allegiant Air 84.1% 66 min 0.4% 18,346

What delays out of AZA were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 2,938 flights that departed AZA and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 46.8% put down to airline operations and 28.9% to late-arriving aircraft.

Late-arriving aircraft 28.9% Airline operations 46.8% Air traffic & airport volume 12.5% Severe weather 11.2% Security 0.4%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 28.9%
  • Airline operations 46.8%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 12.5%
  • Severe weather 11.2%
  • Security 0.4%

Late-arriving aircraft is the knock-on category: the plane came in late, so it went out late again. It is why a 7am problem in Newark is still a problem in Denver at dinnertime, and why it is usually the biggest slice on the bar.

If you are connecting through AZA

Of 18,354 scheduled arrivals into AZA, 79.2% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 3,711 arrivals that ran late, 56.9% were no more than 45 minutes behind — which is the difference between a tight connection and a new boarding pass.

Work out a specific layover — pick the airport and the minutes you have, and the tool reads the same arrival records back as a share.

Busiest routes out of AZA

Ranked by flights, with the share that arrived on time at the far end. Where a route carries enough flights for a page of its own the chip goes there; otherwise it goes to the destination airport.

AZA in one number

Mesa Gateway (AZA)

Rank 127 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: December.

July 2023–June 2026 · 18,273 departures flown

84.1% of departures left on time

Questions about AZA

What is the best time of day to fly out of Mesa Gateway?
6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 94.7% of the time across 3,692 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 8–10pm band was the weakest at 61.3%.
Is the early flight out of AZA really more reliable?
6–8am departures from AZA left on time 94.7% of the time across 3,692 flights; 6–8pm departures, 68.5% across 807. That is a gap of 26.2 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of AZA?
December: 81.4% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,763 scheduled. February was the other end of the year at 87.7%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
How often are flights cancelled at AZA?
0.4% of scheduled departures were cancelled over July 2023 through June 2026. Cancellations are counted against everything scheduled, not against everything that flew — a rate that looks small still adds up to real people in a rebooking line.