Best time to fly out of Idaho Falls (IDA)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Idaho Falls: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 91.3% of the time, against 71.2% in the 4–6pm 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 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6–8am | 91 | 91 | 90 | 91 | 90 | 93 | 92 |
| 8–10am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10am–12pm | 90 | 85 | 90 | 88 | 85 | 89 | 90 |
| 12–2pm | 81 | 84 | 82 | 82 | 85 | 81 | 79 |
| 2–4pm | 78 | 81 | 83 | 79 | 77 | 85 | 81 |
| 4–6pm | 73 | 72 | 76 | 70 | 68 | 71 | 70 |
| 6–8pm | 82 | 90 | 87 | 88 | 80 | 82 | 85 |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at IDA was 6–8am — 91.3% of departures left on time across 2,936 flights. The weakest was 4–6pm at 71.2%. 6–8am departures from IDA left on time 91.3% of the time across 2,936 flights; 6–8pm departures, 84.5% across 1,427. That is a gap of 6.8 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at IDA
July was the hard month at IDA: 80.3% of departures left on time, across 1,005 flights. November was the easy one at 88.5%. 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 | 81.4% | 871 |
| February | 83.7% | 744 |
| March | 84.1% | 881 |
| April | 86.7% | 913 |
| May | 84.2% | 1,110 |
| June | 82.9% | 1,220 |
| July | 80.3% | 1,005 |
| August | 82.2% | 1,056 |
| September | 86.7% | 957 |
| October | 83.5% | 971 |
| November | 88.5% | 968 |
| December | 82% | 1,013 |
Airlines at IDA
Every airline with at least 100 departures from IDA, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkyWest Airlines | 85.2% | 105 min | 0.7% | 9,349 |
| Allegiant Air | 74.4% | 143 min | 0.4% | 1,582 |
| Delta Air Lines | 90% | 182 min | 0.5% | 594 |
| United Airlines | 73.9% | 95 min | 0% | 184 |
What delays out of IDA were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 2,049 flights that departed IDA and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 52.5% put down to airline operations and 22.3% to late-arriving aircraft.
- Late-arriving aircraft 22.3%
- Airline operations 52.5%
- Air traffic & airport volume 11.9%
- Severe weather 13%
- Security 0.3%
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 IDA
Of 11,709 scheduled arrivals into IDA, 81.6% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 2,036 arrivals that ran late, 51.1% 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 IDA
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.
- DEN 79.9% on time · 4,145 flights
- SLC 90.8% on time · 3,306 flights
- DFW 79.4% on time · 1,623 flights
- AZA 77.1% on time · 646 flights
- PHX 87.2% on time · 595 flights
- LAS 68.2% on time · 334 flights
- SNA 74.6% on time · 315 flights
- SEA 83.2% on time · 304 flights
- PDX 69.7% on time · 232 flights
- ORD 61.1% on time · 134 flights
IDA in one number
Idaho Falls (IDA)
Rank 162 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: July.
Questions about IDA
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Idaho Falls?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 91.3% of the time across 2,936 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 4–6pm band was the weakest at 71.2%.
- Is the early flight out of IDA really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from IDA left on time 91.3% of the time across 2,936 flights; 6–8pm departures, 84.5% across 1,427. That is a gap of 6.8 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of IDA?
- July: 80.3% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,005 scheduled. November was the other end of the year at 88.5%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at IDA?
- Delta Air Lines — 90% of its 594 departures from IDA left on time. United Airlines sat at the other end at 73.9% over 184 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at IDA?
- 0.6% 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.