Best time to fly out of Kona (KOA)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Ellison Onizuka Kona at Keāhole: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 96% of the time, against 81.9% in the 2–4pm 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 | 98 | 96 | 97 | 96 | 95 | 95 | 96 |
| 8–10am | 96 | 95 | 95 | 96 | 95 | 94 | 96 |
| 10am–12pm | 91 | 93 | 91 | 90 | 91 | 88 | 93 |
| 12–2pm | 84 | 85 | 84 | 82 | 81 | 82 | 85 |
| 2–4pm | 86 | 84 | 84 | 80 | 77 | 82 | 82 |
| 4–6pm | 84 | 87 | 85 | 83 | 78 | 85 | 85 |
| 6–8pm | 88 | 89 | 92 | 88 | 83 | 88 | 88 |
| 8–10pm | 91 | 92 | 93 | 89 | 87 | 87 | 90 |
| 10pm–12am | 92 | 92 | 90 | 93 | 88 | 88 | 91 |
The steadiest stretch at KOA was 6–8am — 96% of departures left on time across 3,615 flights. The weakest was 2–4pm at 81.9%. 6–8am departures from KOA left on time 96% of the time across 3,615 flights; 6–8pm departures, 87.8% across 4,140. That is a gap of 8.2 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at KOA
January was the hard month at KOA: 85.2% of departures left on time, across 4,203 flights. September was the easy one at 92.6%. 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 | 85.2% | 4,203 |
| February | 86.8% | 3,789 |
| March | 87% | 4,214 |
| April | 88.4% | 3,863 |
| May | 88.7% | 4,005 |
| June | 88.6% | 4,099 |
| July | 86.9% | 4,379 |
| August | 88.8% | 4,264 |
| September | 92.6% | 3,980 |
| October | 87.9% | 4,088 |
| November | 90.4% | 3,914 |
| December | 86% | 4,243 |
Airlines at KOA
Every airline with at least 100 departures from KOA, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaiian Airlines | 89.2% | 45 min | 0.8% | 19,295 |
| Alaska Airlines | 80.5% | 55 min | 1.5% | 10,375 |
| Southwest Airlines | 93.7% | 50 min | 0.6% | 9,763 |
| United Airlines | 88.4% | 96 min | 1.2% | 4,966 |
| American Airlines | 89.7% | 232 min | 0.6% | 2,355 |
| Delta Air Lines | 86.3% | 66 min | 1.9% | 2,287 |
What delays out of KOA were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 6,089 flights that departed KOA and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 50.1% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 36.4% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 50.1%
- Airline operations 36.4%
- Air traffic & airport volume 10.3%
- Severe weather 2.9%
- Security 0.2%
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 KOA
Of 49,041 scheduled arrivals into KOA, 84.1% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 7,266 arrivals that ran late, 70.2% 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 KOA
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.
- HNL 87.3% on time · 23,403 flights
- LAX 86.3% on time · 4,888 flights
- OGG 90.2% on time · 4,611 flights
- SEA 86% on time · 4,248 flights
- SFO 85.8% on time · 2,572 flights
- PHX 93.5% on time · 1,152 flights
- DEN 92.3% on time · 1,101 flights
- LIH 95.2% on time · 1,098 flights
- LAS 95.7% on time · 1,096 flights
- SAN 78% on time · 1,034 flights
KOA in one number
Ellison Onizuka Kona at Keāhole (KOA)
Rank 79 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: January.
Questions about KOA
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Ellison Onizuka Kona at Keāhole?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 96% of the time across 3,615 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 2–4pm band was the weakest at 81.9%.
- Is the early flight out of KOA really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from KOA left on time 96% of the time across 3,615 flights; 6–8pm departures, 87.8% across 4,140. That is a gap of 8.2 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of KOA?
- January: 85.2% of the departures that flew left on time, with 4,203 scheduled. September was the other end of the year at 92.6%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at KOA?
- Southwest Airlines — 93.7% of its 9,763 departures from KOA left on time. Alaska Airlines sat at the other end at 80.5% over 10,375 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at KOA?
- 1% 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.