Best time to fly out of Wichita (ICT)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower: departures in the Before 6am band left on time 91.4% of the time, against 66.2% 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.
| Departure time | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before 6am | 90 | 87 | 92 | 93 | 92 | 93 | 92 |
| 6–8am | 91 | 89 | 92 | 91 | 90 | 90 | 90 |
| 8–10am | 90 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 88 | 88 | 90 |
| 10am–12pm | 80 | 82 | 83 | 85 | 84 | 80 | 78 |
| 12–2pm | 75 | 83 | 82 | 78 | 78 | 80 | 80 |
| 2–4pm | 78 | 81 | 81 | 80 | 76 | 83 | 78 |
| 4–6pm | 73 | 79 | 76 | 72 | 73 | 76 | 73 |
| 6–8pm | 64 | 70 | 69 | 61 | 67 | 69 | 66 |
| 8–10pm | 69 | 69 | 75 | 74 | 72 | – | 73 |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at ICT was Before 6am — 91.4% of departures left on time across 2,649 flights. The weakest was 6–8pm at 66.2%. 6–8am departures from ICT left on time 90.3% of the time across 6,865 flights; 6–8pm departures, 66.2% across 2,242. That is a gap of 24.1 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at ICT
June was the hard month at ICT: 73% of departures left on time, across 2,990 flights. October was the easy one at 87.4%. 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 | 82.4% | 2,412 |
| February | 86.8% | 2,260 |
| March | 82.5% | 2,594 |
| April | 82.1% | 2,710 |
| May | 77.1% | 2,793 |
| June | 73% | 2,990 |
| July | 79.4% | 2,768 |
| August | 82.4% | 2,770 |
| September | 87.1% | 2,528 |
| October | 87.4% | 2,621 |
| November | 83.3% | 2,555 |
| December | 81.9% | 2,512 |
Airlines at ICT
Every airline with at least 100 departures from ICT, 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 | 81.5% | 104 min | 1.5% | 9,734 |
| Envoy Air | 81.7% | 71 min | 2.2% | 6,284 |
| Southwest Airlines | 85.2% | 61 min | 0.6% | 5,362 |
| Delta Air Lines | 85.6% | 91 min | 1.3% | 3,023 |
| PSA Airlines | 72.8% | 119 min | 6.1% | 2,200 |
| United Airlines | 89.7% | 85 min | 1.2% | 2,109 |
| American Airlines | 71.3% | 111 min | 2.8% | 1,367 |
| Allegiant Air | 75.3% | 86 min | 0.7% | 1,151 |
| Endeavor Air | 83.8% | 49 min | 0% | 198 |
What delays out of ICT were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 6,059 flights that departed ICT and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 35.7% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 35.6% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 35.7%
- Airline operations 35.6%
- Air traffic & airport volume 18.4%
- Severe weather 10.3%
- 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 ICT
Of 31,509 scheduled arrivals into ICT, 74.7% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 7,381 arrivals that ran late, 53% 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 ICT
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.
- DFW 76.6% on time · 7,783 flights
- DEN 79.8% on time · 5,724 flights
- ORD 78.5% on time · 5,395 flights
- ATL 87.2% on time · 3,208 flights
- STL 87.9% on time · 1,825 flights
- PHX 85.4% on time · 1,663 flights
- IAH 81% on time · 1,626 flights
- LAS 81.4% on time · 1,320 flights
- MSP 85.6% on time · 1,026 flights
- DCA 69.7% on time · 802 flights
ICT in one number
Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower (ICT)
Rank 101 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: Before 6am. Hardest month: June.
Questions about ICT
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower?
- Before 6am. Departures in that band left on time 91.4% of the time across 2,649 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 6–8pm band was the weakest at 66.2%.
- Is the early flight out of ICT really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from ICT left on time 90.3% of the time across 6,865 flights; 6–8pm departures, 66.2% across 2,242. That is a gap of 24.1 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of ICT?
- June: 73% of the departures that flew left on time, with 2,990 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 87.4%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at ICT?
- United Airlines — 89.7% of its 2,109 departures from ICT left on time. American Airlines sat at the other end at 71.3% over 1,367 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at ICT?
- 1.8% 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.