Best time to fly out of Trenton Mercer (TTN)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Trenton Mercer: departures in the 8–10am band left on time 86.7% of the time, against 70.2% in the 6–8pm 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
6–8am 83 88 88 87 84
8–10am 87
10am–12pm 80 78 87 72
12–2pm
2–4pm
4–6pm
6–8pm 67 74
8–10pm
10pm–12am
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at TTN was 8–10am — 86.7% of departures left on time across 120 flights. The weakest was 6–8pm at 70.2%. 6–8am departures from TTN left on time 85.9% of the time across 692 flights; 6–8pm departures, 70.2% across 205. That is a gap of 15.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at TTN

March was the hard month at TTN: 67.3% of departures left on time, across 460 flights. October was the easy one at 85.1%. 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, 75.6%.
Departure on-time share at TTN by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 80.9% 384
February 78.2% 409
March 67.3% 460
April 71.9% 489
May 73% 358
June 75.2% 343
July 69% 432
August 73.1% 433
September 81.7% 311
October 85.1% 312
November 83.7% 356
December 74.4% 411

Airlines at TTN

Every airline with at least 100 departures from TTN, 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
Frontier Airlines 75.8% 86 min 3.2% 4,583
Allegiant Air 66.4% 83 min 4.3% 115

What delays out of TTN were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 1,084 flights that departed TTN and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 58.7% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 19.8% to airline operations.

Late-arriving aircraft 58.7% Airline operations 19.8% Air traffic & airport volume 19.8% Severe weather 1.7% Security 0%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 58.7%
  • Airline operations 19.8%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 19.8%
  • Severe weather 1.7%
  • 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 TTN

Of 4,699 scheduled arrivals into TTN, 70.9% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 1,188 arrivals that ran late, 45.4% 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 TTN

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.

TTN in one number

Trenton Mercer (TTN)

Rank 213 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 8–10am. Hardest month: March.

July 2023–June 2026 · 4,545 departures flown

75.6% of departures left on time

Questions about TTN

What is the best time of day to fly out of Trenton Mercer?
8–10am. Departures in that band left on time 86.7% of the time across 120 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 6–8pm band was the weakest at 70.2%.
Is the early flight out of TTN really more reliable?
6–8am departures from TTN left on time 85.9% of the time across 692 flights; 6–8pm departures, 70.2% across 205. That is a gap of 15.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of TTN?
March: 67.3% of the departures that flew left on time, with 460 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 85.1%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at TTN?
Frontier Airlines — 75.8% of its 4,583 departures from TTN left on time. Allegiant Air sat at the other end at 66.4% over 115 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
How often are flights cancelled at TTN?
3.3% 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.