Best time to fly out of Harrisburg (MDT)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Harrisburg: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 90.1% of the time, against 61.1% 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.
| Departure time | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before 6am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6–8am | 89 | 88 | 94 | 92 | 91 | 88 | 88 |
| 8–10am | 85 | 94 | 93 | 90 | 85 | 92 | 90 |
| 10am–12pm | 81 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 80 | 78 | 74 |
| 12–2pm | 77 | 86 | 87 | 83 | 84 | 85 | 79 |
| 2–4pm | 71 | 78 | 76 | 79 | 67 | 76 | 79 |
| 4–6pm | 76 | 80 | 77 | 73 | 76 | 78 | 73 |
| 6–8pm | 74 | 80 | 77 | 72 | 72 | 74 | 63 |
| 8–10pm | 63 | – | – | 66 | 59 | – | 58 |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at MDT was 6–8am — 90.1% of departures left on time across 4,312 flights. The weakest was 8–10pm at 61.1%. 6–8am departures from MDT left on time 90.1% of the time across 4,312 flights; 6–8pm departures, 72.4% across 1,673. That is a gap of 17.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at MDT
December was the hard month at MDT: 75.7% of departures left on time, across 1,289 flights. October was the easy one at 87.2%. 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 | 80.3% | 1,154 |
| February | 80.9% | 1,157 |
| March | 79.5% | 1,290 |
| April | 84.4% | 1,527 |
| May | 82.3% | 1,522 |
| June | 77.5% | 1,484 |
| July | 76.3% | 1,496 |
| August | 80.7% | 1,374 |
| September | 84% | 1,266 |
| October | 87.2% | 1,484 |
| November | 85.3% | 1,369 |
| December | 75.7% | 1,289 |
Airlines at MDT
Every airline with at least 100 departures from MDT, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines | 82.1% | 111 min | 2% | 3,019 |
| Allegiant Air | 72.3% | 94 min | 1.1% | 2,852 |
| Delta Air Lines | 84.7% | 75 min | 1.3% | 2,715 |
| SkyWest Airlines | 79.5% | 114 min | 1.4% | 2,282 |
| PSA Airlines | 85.8% | 113 min | 0.9% | 1,398 |
| United Airlines | 87.3% | 78 min | 1.4% | 1,338 |
| Republic Airways | 88.8% | 67 min | 2.8% | 1,187 |
| Envoy Air | 76.3% | 73 min | 2.2% | 905 |
| Endeavor Air | 89% | 98 min | 0.8% | 365 |
| Frontier Airlines | 68.8% | 106 min | 2.3% | 351 |
What delays out of MDT were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 3,152 flights that departed MDT and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 40.7% put down to airline operations and 34.7% to late-arriving aircraft.
- Late-arriving aircraft 34.7%
- Airline operations 40.7%
- Air traffic & airport volume 16.7%
- Severe weather 7.9%
- 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 MDT
Of 16,412 scheduled arrivals into MDT, 75.9% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 3,684 arrivals that ran late, 50.4% 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 MDT
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.
- ORD 78.6% on time · 4,248 flights
- CLT 82.5% on time · 3,093 flights
- ATL 86.8% on time · 2,966 flights
- DTW 83.5% on time · 1,288 flights
- DFW 82.9% on time · 1,096 flights
- SFB 67.3% on time · 807 flights
- PIE 71.2% on time · 473 flights
- PGD 76.5% on time · 426 flights
- EWR 90% on time · 403 flights
- MCO 71.1% on time · 351 flights
MDT in one number
Harrisburg (MDT)
Rank 134 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: December.
Questions about MDT
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Harrisburg?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 90.1% of the time across 4,312 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 8–10pm band was the weakest at 61.1%.
- Is the early flight out of MDT really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from MDT left on time 90.1% of the time across 4,312 flights; 6–8pm departures, 72.4% across 1,673. That is a gap of 17.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of MDT?
- December: 75.7% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,289 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 87.2%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at MDT?
- Endeavor Air — 89% of its 365 departures from MDT left on time. Frontier Airlines sat at the other end at 68.8% over 351 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at MDT?
- 1.5% 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.