Best time to fly out of Grand Junction (GJT)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Grand Junction: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 92% of the time, against 74.8% in the 4–6pm 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 | 94 | 90 | 94 | 91 | 89 | 91 | 91 |
| 6–8am | 90 | 92 | 91 | 95 | 93 | 90 | 92 |
| 8–10am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10am–12pm | 78 | 87 | 88 | 85 | 85 | 84 | 86 |
| 12–2pm | 83 | 79 | 89 | 80 | 81 | 78 | 81 |
| 2–4pm | 72 | 73 | 80 | 74 | 77 | 76 | 77 |
| 4–6pm | 71 | 74 | 81 | 81 | 77 | 77 | 63 |
| 6–8pm | 77 | 80 | 85 | 78 | 81 | 79 | 80 |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at GJT was 6–8am — 92% of departures left on time across 2,697 flights. The weakest was 4–6pm at 74.8%. 6–8am departures from GJT left on time 92% of the time across 2,697 flights; 6–8pm departures, 80% across 1,598. That is a gap of 12 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at GJT
June was the hard month at GJT: 77.7% of departures left on time, across 1,197 flights. December was the easy one at 89.3%. 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 | 84.6% | 1,011 |
| February | 85.2% | 954 |
| March | 86.4% | 1,080 |
| April | 83.8% | 1,031 |
| May | 82.2% | 1,171 |
| June | 77.7% | 1,197 |
| July | 82.1% | 1,035 |
| August | 80.7% | 1,003 |
| September | 87.2% | 1,032 |
| October | 88.5% | 1,083 |
| November | 85.1% | 999 |
| December | 89.3% | 1,066 |
Airlines at GJT
Every airline with at least 100 departures from GJT, 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 | 83.9% | 105 min | 1.1% | 8,456 |
| Envoy Air | 84.6% | 62 min | 0.8% | 2,007 |
| United Airlines | 87% | 97 min | 0.6% | 2,005 |
| Allegiant Air | 70.4% | 119 min | 2.6% | 194 |
What delays out of GJT were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 2,283 flights that departed GJT and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 46% put down to airline operations and 25.3% to late-arriving aircraft.
- Late-arriving aircraft 25.3%
- Airline operations 46%
- Air traffic & airport volume 19.3%
- Severe weather 9.3%
- 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 GJT
Of 12,661 scheduled arrivals into GJT, 81.3% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 2,234 arrivals that ran late, 54.3% 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 GJT
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.
- DEN 78.4% on time · 5,590 flights
- PHX 85.5% on time · 3,075 flights
- DFW 81.4% on time · 2,856 flights
- SLC 93.7% on time · 944 flights
- LAS 63.7% on time · 159 flights
- LAX Not enough flights to say · 35 flights
- ASE Not enough flights to say · 1 flights
- EGE Not enough flights to say · 1 flights
- ATL Not enough flights to say · 1 flights
GJT in one number
Grand Junction (GJT)
Rank 153 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: June.
Questions about GJT
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Grand Junction?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 92% of the time across 2,697 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 4–6pm band was the weakest at 74.8%.
- Is the early flight out of GJT really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from GJT left on time 92% of the time across 2,697 flights; 6–8pm departures, 80% across 1,598. That is a gap of 12 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of GJT?
- June: 77.7% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,197 scheduled. December was the other end of the year at 89.3%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at GJT?
- United Airlines — 87% of its 2,005 departures from GJT left on time. Allegiant Air sat at the other end at 70.4% over 194 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at GJT?
- 1% 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.