Best time to fly out of Roanoke Blacksburg (ROA)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Roanoke Blacksburg: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 89.4% of the time, against 64.4% 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 | 92 | 90 | 93 | 89 | 88 | 86 | 89 |
| 8–10am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10am–12pm | 79 | 78 | 86 | 76 | 74 | 76 | 84 |
| 12–2pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2–4pm | – | – | – | – | 64 | – | – |
| 4–6pm | 72 | 69 | 73 | 65 | 67 | 81 | 69 |
| 6–8pm | 75 | – | – | 77 | 71 | – | – |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at ROA was 6–8am — 89.4% of departures left on time across 2,393 flights. The weakest was 2–4pm at 64.4%. 6–8am departures from ROA left on time 89.4% of the time across 2,393 flights; 6–8pm departures, 74.1% across 325. That is a gap of 15.3 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at ROA
December was the hard month at ROA: 71.1% of departures left on time, across 620 flights. September was the easy one at 86.8%. 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 | 76.1% | 526 |
| February | 82.4% | 456 |
| March | 76.5% | 501 |
| April | 78.6% | 525 |
| May | 76.1% | 508 |
| June | 71.5% | 554 |
| July | 74.3% | 632 |
| August | 80.5% | 696 |
| September | 86.8% | 658 |
| October | 84.4% | 729 |
| November | 82.6% | 663 |
| December | 71.1% | 620 |
Airlines at ROA
Every airline with at least 100 departures from ROA, 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 | 78.9% | 112 min | 1.8% | 1,924 |
| Endeavor Air | 86% | 89 min | 1.6% | 1,456 |
| Republic Airways | 75.9% | 108 min | 5.3% | 1,325 |
| Delta Air Lines | 89.4% | 116 min | 1.8% | 1,167 |
| Allegiant Air | 57.5% | 98 min | 2.2% | 826 |
| PSA Airlines | 72.3% | 76 min | 1.6% | 370 |
What delays out of ROA were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 1,580 flights that departed ROA and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 46% put down to airline operations and 32.8% to late-arriving aircraft.
- Late-arriving aircraft 32.8%
- Airline operations 46%
- Air traffic & airport volume 15.4%
- Severe weather 5.8%
- 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 ROA
Of 7,069 scheduled arrivals into ROA, 75.8% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 1,516 arrivals that ran late, 54% 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 ROA
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.
- ATL 86.4% on time · 2,253 flights
- ORD 76.4% on time · 2,181 flights
- LGA 76.2% on time · 1,438 flights
- PIE 58.8% on time · 351 flights
- SFB 48.4% on time · 349 flights
- CLT 68.8% on time · 315 flights
- SRQ 79.8% on time · 126 flights
- PHL Not enough flights to say · 29 flights
- DFW Not enough flights to say · 26 flights
ROA in one number
Roanoke Blacksburg (ROA)
Rank 187 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: December.
Questions about ROA
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Roanoke Blacksburg?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 89.4% of the time across 2,393 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 2–4pm band was the weakest at 64.4%.
- Is the early flight out of ROA really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from ROA left on time 89.4% of the time across 2,393 flights; 6–8pm departures, 74.1% across 325. That is a gap of 15.3 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of ROA?
- December: 71.1% of the departures that flew left on time, with 620 scheduled. September was the other end of the year at 86.8%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at ROA?
- Delta Air Lines — 89.4% of its 1,167 departures from ROA left on time. Allegiant Air sat at the other end at 57.5% over 826 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at ROA?
- 2.5% 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.