Best time to fly out of Ted Stevens Anchorage (ANC)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Ted Stevens Anchorage: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 92.1% of the time, against 71% 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.

Share of departures that left on time, by hour band and day of week.
Departure time MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
Before 6am 84 85 89 90 86 81 85
6–8am 93 93 92 92 92 92 91
8–10am 89 90 91 90 91 89 89
10am–12pm 85 89 91 88 88 88 89
12–2pm 83 85 84 82 84 82 83
2–4pm 79 77 79 77 79 79 78
4–6pm 83 85 85 78 85 80 82
6–8pm 79 85 83 76 83 84 86
8–10pm 68 74 72 73 71 68 71
10pm–12am 86 85 84 84 84 83 86
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at ANC was 6–8am — 92.1% of departures left on time across 5,659 flights. The weakest was 8–10pm at 71%. 6–8am departures from ANC left on time 92.1% of the time across 5,659 flights; 6–8pm departures, 82.1% across 3,941. That is a gap of 10 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at ANC

July was the hard month at ANC: 78.1% of departures left on time, across 6,687 flights. September was the easy one at 88%. 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, 83.9%.
Departure on-time share at ANC by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 78.3% 3,656
February 87.6% 3,368
March 84.2% 3,973
April 86.9% 3,866
May 87.3% 5,235
June 83.2% 6,571
July 78.1% 6,687
August 81.8% 6,568
September 88% 4,960
October 87.8% 4,061
November 86.9% 3,650
December 80.4% 3,668

Airlines at ANC

Every airline with at least 100 departures from ANC, 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
Alaska Airlines 85.1% 52 min 1.3% 42,835
Delta Air Lines 84.8% 92 min 0.5% 7,617
United Airlines 80.2% 81 min 1.2% 3,957
American Airlines 64% 107 min 0.3% 1,598
Hawaiian Airlines 37.7% 76 min 1.9% 162

Hawaiian Airlines (through December 2025) stopped filing before June 2026. Its row covers a shorter run of months than the rest of the table, so its figure is not set against the others anywhere on this page.

What delays out of ANC were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 9,065 flights that departed ANC and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 42.3% put down to airline operations and 36.4% to late-arriving aircraft.

Late-arriving aircraft 36.4% Airline operations 42.3% Air traffic & airport volume 14.8% Severe weather 6.4% Security 0.1%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 36.4%
  • Airline operations 42.3%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 14.8%
  • Severe weather 6.4%
  • 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 ANC

Of 56,272 scheduled arrivals into ANC, 77% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 12,091 arrivals that ran late, 65.9% 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 ANC

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.

ANC in one number

Ted Stevens Anchorage (ANC)

Rank 70 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: July.

July 2023–June 2026 · 55,603 departures flown

83.9% of departures left on time

Questions about ANC

What is the best time of day to fly out of Ted Stevens Anchorage?
6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 92.1% of the time across 5,659 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 8–10pm band was the weakest at 71%.
Is the early flight out of ANC really more reliable?
6–8am departures from ANC left on time 92.1% of the time across 5,659 flights; 6–8pm departures, 82.1% across 3,941. That is a gap of 10 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of ANC?
July: 78.1% of the departures that flew left on time, with 6,687 scheduled. September was the other end of the year at 88%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at ANC?
Alaska Airlines — 85.1% of its 42,835 departures from ANC left on time. American Airlines sat at the other end at 64% over 1,598 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked. Airlines that stopped filing before June 2026 are left out of the ranking — their figures cover a shorter run of months than the rest of the table.
How often are flights cancelled at ANC?
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.