Best time to fly out of Columbia (CAE)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Columbia: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 91.9% of the time, against 68.8% in the 6–8pm 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.
| Departure time | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before 6am | 89 | 89 | 95 | 93 | 91 | 95 | 90 |
| 6–8am | 91 | 92 | 94 | 93 | 91 | 91 | 91 |
| 8–10am | – | – | – | – | – | – | 90 |
| 10am–12pm | 81 | 82 | 90 | 87 | 79 | 85 | 85 |
| 12–2pm | 79 | 82 | 87 | 90 | 77 | 82 | 75 |
| 2–4pm | 80 | 80 | 80 | 79 | 74 | 80 | 78 |
| 4–6pm | 76 | 78 | 79 | 78 | 73 | 72 | 70 |
| 6–8pm | 70 | 70 | 74 | 72 | 66 | – | 62 |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at CAE was 6–8am — 91.9% of departures left on time across 4,875 flights. The weakest was 6–8pm at 68.8%. 6–8am departures from CAE left on time 91.9% of the time across 4,875 flights; 6–8pm departures, 68.8% across 1,757. That is a gap of 23.1 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at CAE
July was the hard month at CAE: 76.3% of departures left on time, across 1,640 flights. October was the easy one at 87.9%. Each month pools three years of that month, so a single bad week does not decide it.
| Month | Share departures that left on time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 81.9% | 1,415 |
| February | 84% | 1,310 |
| March | 83.7% | 1,290 |
| April | 83.8% | 1,409 |
| May | 79.4% | 1,551 |
| June | 79% | 1,502 |
| July | 76.3% | 1,640 |
| August | 83.4% | 1,576 |
| September | 85.9% | 1,642 |
| October | 87.9% | 1,733 |
| November | 86.3% | 1,626 |
| December | 82.2% | 1,522 |
Airlines at CAE
Every airline with at least 100 departures from CAE, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA Airlines | 80.6% | 99 min | 3.3% | 5,725 |
| Delta Air Lines | 86.7% | 80 min | 1.2% | 5,067 |
| Endeavor Air | 86.6% | 76 min | 1.9% | 1,819 |
| SkyWest Airlines | 87.5% | 100 min | 1.4% | 1,537 |
| Republic Airways | 81.2% | 94 min | 4.6% | 1,487 |
| American Airlines | 74.2% | 98 min | 2.5% | 1,200 |
| Envoy Air | 81.9% | 62 min | 2.7% | 1,038 |
| Allegiant Air | 61.1% | 92 min | 1.6% | 188 |
| Spirit Airlines | 65.1% | 115 min | 3.9% | 155 |
What delays out of CAE were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 3,270 flights that departed CAE and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 41.7% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 33.9% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 41.7%
- Airline operations 33.9%
- Air traffic & airport volume 16.7%
- Severe weather 7.6%
- Security 0.1%
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 CAE
Of 18,216 scheduled arrivals into CAE, 76.3% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 3,869 arrivals that ran late, 51.4% 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 CAE
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.
- ATL 88.5% on time · 6,026 flights
- DCA 74.3% on time · 3,217 flights
- DFW 75.9% on time · 2,464 flights
- CLT 80.8% on time · 2,361 flights
- LGA 82.4% on time · 2,123 flights
- ORD 81.5% on time · 1,610 flights
- FLL 59.3% on time · 144 flights
- SFB Not enough flights to say · 96 flights
- MIA Not enough flights to say · 71 flights
- EWR Not enough flights to say · 58 flights
CAE in one number
Columbia (CAE)
Rank 128 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: July.
Questions about CAE
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Columbia?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 91.9% of the time across 4,875 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 6–8pm band was the weakest at 68.8%.
- Is the early flight out of CAE really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from CAE left on time 91.9% of the time across 4,875 flights; 6–8pm departures, 68.8% across 1,757. That is a gap of 23.1 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of CAE?
- July: 76.3% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,640 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 87.9%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at CAE?
- SkyWest Airlines — 87.5% of its 1,537 departures from CAE left on time. Allegiant Air sat at the other end at 61.1% over 188 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at CAE?
- 2.4% 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.