Best time to fly out of Akron Canton (CAK)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Akron Canton: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 88.3% of the time, against 62.9% 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 86 89 90 89 88 86 89
8–10am 82 83 87 80 86 86 82
10am–12pm 76 82 85 84 81
12–2pm 84 84 89 82 80 84 78
2–4pm 70 76 79 80 66 76 75
4–6pm 72 72 73 76 68 67 68
6–8pm 69 70 75 75 69 67 68
8–10pm 63 62
10pm–12am
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at CAK was 6–8am — 88.3% of departures left on time across 3,067 flights. The weakest was 8–10pm at 62.9%. 6–8am departures from CAK left on time 88.3% of the time across 3,067 flights; 6–8pm departures, 70.3% across 1,525. That is a gap of 18 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at CAK

July was the hard month at CAK: 71.3% of departures left on time, across 1,042 flights. October was the easy one at 88.7%. 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, 79.5%.
Departure on-time share at CAK by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 78.6% 919
February 78.7% 865
March 77.4% 1,038
April 80.8% 1,072
May 81.2% 1,155
June 74.9% 1,214
July 71.3% 1,042
August 82.4% 985
September 82.9% 898
October 88.7% 967
November 85.1% 909
December 73.7% 935

Airlines at CAK

Every airline with at least 100 departures from CAK, 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 81.5% 108 min 2.2% 5,487
SkyWest Airlines 78.9% 128 min 2.6% 3,653
Allegiant Air 76.4% 96 min 1% 2,748
Envoy Air 79.2% 2.8% 109

A dash under typical delay means fewer than 30 of that airline’s departures ran 15 minutes late or more — too few to average.

What delays out of CAK were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 2,759 flights that departed CAK and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 39.8% put down to airline operations and 38% to late-arriving aircraft.

Late-arriving aircraft 38% Airline operations 39.8% Air traffic & airport volume 14.8% Severe weather 7.5% Security 0%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 38%
  • Airline operations 39.8%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 14.8%
  • Severe weather 7.5%
  • Security 0%

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 CAK

Of 12,001 scheduled arrivals into CAK, 70.5% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 3,258 arrivals that ran late, 44% 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 CAK

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.

CAK in one number

Akron Canton (CAK)

Rank 158 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: July.

July 2023–June 2026 · 11,755 departures flown

79.5% of departures left on time

Questions about CAK

What is the best time of day to fly out of Akron Canton?
6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 88.3% of the time across 3,067 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 8–10pm band was the weakest at 62.9%.
Is the early flight out of CAK really more reliable?
6–8am departures from CAK left on time 88.3% of the time across 3,067 flights; 6–8pm departures, 70.3% across 1,525. That is a gap of 18 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of CAK?
July: 71.3% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,042 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 88.7%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at CAK?
PSA Airlines — 81.5% of its 5,487 departures from CAK left on time. Allegiant Air sat at the other end at 76.4% over 2,748 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
How often are flights cancelled at CAK?
2% 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.