Best time to fly out of Roberts (RDM)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Roberts: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 91.4% of the time, against 75.1% in the 12–2pm 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 90 92 91 91 91 90 91
6–8am 89 92 92 92 95 90 91
8–10am 90 84 90 89 87 87 92
10am–12pm 91 90 88 87 86 92 87
12–2pm 69 77 76 78 78 74 73
2–4pm 85 86 87 83 81 86 83
4–6pm 82 83 82 82 81 83 78
6–8pm 77 82 87 76 73 83 76
8–10pm
10pm–12am
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at RDM was 6–8am — 91.4% of departures left on time across 2,524 flights. The weakest was 12–2pm at 75.1%. 6–8am departures from RDM left on time 91.4% of the time across 2,524 flights; 6–8pm departures, 78.7% across 2,001. That is a gap of 12.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at RDM

July was the hard month at RDM: 79.2% of departures left on time, across 1,604 flights. October was the easy one at 89.4%. 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, 84%.
Departure on-time share at RDM by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 80.2% 1,433
February 79.7% 1,353
March 84.6% 1,562
April 86.8% 1,462
May 85.1% 1,560
June 79.4% 1,620
July 79.2% 1,604
August 85.6% 1,633
September 88.4% 1,627
October 89.4% 1,556
November 87.4% 1,480
December 80.9% 1,486

Airlines at RDM

Every airline with at least 100 departures from RDM, 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 86.2% 97 min 1.4% 11,407
United Airlines 75.7% 81 min 0.8% 3,527
Alaska Airlines 82.7% 57 min 1.6% 1,647
Envoy Air 91.7% 113 min 0.5% 1,568
American Airlines 54.5% 146 min 1.3% 227

What delays out of RDM were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 3,158 flights that departed RDM and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 38.1% put down to airline operations and 22.9% to late-arriving aircraft.

Late-arriving aircraft 22.9% Airline operations 38.1% Air traffic & airport volume 20.8% Severe weather 18.1% Security 0.1%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 22.9%
  • Airline operations 38.1%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 20.8%
  • Severe weather 18.1%
  • 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 RDM

Of 18,378 scheduled arrivals into RDM, 82.3% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 2,953 arrivals that ran late, 61.1% 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 RDM

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.

RDM in one number

Roberts (RDM)

Rank 126 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: July.

July 2023–June 2026 · 18,155 departures flown

84% of departures left on time

Questions about RDM

What is the best time of day to fly out of Roberts?
6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 91.4% of the time across 2,524 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 12–2pm band was the weakest at 75.1%.
Is the early flight out of RDM really more reliable?
6–8am departures from RDM left on time 91.4% of the time across 2,524 flights; 6–8pm departures, 78.7% across 2,001. That is a gap of 12.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of RDM?
July: 79.2% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,604 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 89.4%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at RDM?
Envoy Air — 91.7% of its 1,568 departures from RDM left on time. American Airlines sat at the other end at 54.5% over 227 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
How often are flights cancelled at RDM?
1.2% 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.