Best time to fly out of Cincinnati (CVG)

The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Cincinnati Northern Kentucky: departures in the Before 6am band left on time 91% of the time, against 66.8% 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 91 91 93 93 92 91 87
6–8am 91 90 92 91 90 88 91
8–10am 88 88 88 88 87 86 87
10am–12pm 85 87 89 85 84 83 85
12–2pm 78 84 85 81 79 85 80
2–4pm 76 80 82 75 74 78 72
4–6pm 76 80 78 74 73 75 71
6–8pm 72 78 78 72 72 73 68
8–10pm 67 77 76 65 66 65 60
10pm–12am – – – – – – –
fewer left on time more left on time

The steadiest stretch at CVG was Before 6am — 91% of departures left on time across 3,627 flights. The weakest was 8–10pm at 66.8%. 6–8am departures from CVG left on time 90.6% of the time across 26,160 flights; 6–8pm departures, 72.7% across 12,179. That is a gap of 17.9 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.

The year at CVG

July was the hard month at CVG: 72.1% of departures left on time, across 10,412 flights. October was the easy one at 87.8%. 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, 82.2%.
Departure on-time share at CVG by calendar month
Month Share departures that left on time Flights
January 83.1% 7,896
February 85.3% 7,599
March 82% 9,607
April 84% 9,309
May 80.7% 9,714
June 77.3% 9,796
July 72.1% 10,412
August 81% 9,981
September 86.3% 9,229
October 87.8% 10,164
November 87.8% 9,200
December 80.8% 9,153

Airlines at CVG

Every airline with at least 100 departures from CVG, 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
Delta Air Lines 85.4% 75 min 0.9% 22,220
Republic Airways 86.3% 76 min 2.4% 15,028
Frontier Airlines 79.3% 84 min 1.9% 11,984
Allegiant Air 78.7% 86 min 0.9% 10,294
Endeavor Air 85.4% 76 min 1.9% 10,280
American Airlines 77% 92 min 1.9% 9,376
PSA Airlines 77.5% 102 min 2.7% 7,909
Envoy Air 83% 77 min 1.2% 7,864
Southwest Airlines 78.5% 52 min 0.7% 6,857
United Airlines 86.5% 90 min 1.2% 6,613
SkyWest Airlines 78.1% 109 min 2.6% 2,494
Alaska Airlines 77.4% 57 min 1.8% 1,141

What delays out of CVG were put down to

Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 21,401 flights that departed CVG and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 36% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 32.7% to airline operations.

Late-arriving aircraft 36% Airline operations 32.7% Air traffic & airport volume 25.1% Severe weather 6% Security 0.2%
  • Late-arriving aircraft 36%
  • Airline operations 32.7%
  • Air traffic & airport volume 25.1%
  • Severe weather 6%
  • Security 0.2%

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 CVG

Of 112,072 scheduled arrivals into CVG, 76.4% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 24,588 arrivals that ran late, 51.5% 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 CVG

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.

CVG in one number

Cincinnati Northern Kentucky (CVG)

Rank 48 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: Before 6am. Hardest month: July.

July 2023–June 2026 · 110,288 departures flown

82.2% of departures left on time

Questions about CVG

What is the best time of day to fly out of Cincinnati Northern Kentucky?
Before 6am. Departures in that band left on time 91% of the time across 3,627 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 8–10pm band was the weakest at 66.8%.
Is the early flight out of CVG really more reliable?
6–8am departures from CVG left on time 90.6% of the time across 26,160 flights; 6–8pm departures, 72.7% across 12,179. That is a gap of 17.9 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
What is the worst month to fly out of CVG?
July: 72.1% of the departures that flew left on time, with 10,412 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 87.8%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
Which airline is most on time at CVG?
United Airlines — 86.5% of its 6,613 departures from CVG left on time. American Airlines sat at the other end at 77% over 9,376 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
How often are flights cancelled at CVG?
1.6% 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.