Best time to fly out of Ketchikan (KTN)
The early-flight folk wisdom bends at Ketchikan: the steadiest stretch was the 8–10pm band at 87.8%, while 4–6pm departures managed 80.1%. 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 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6–8am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 8–10am | 82 | 87 | 87 | 86 | 84 | 86 | 83 |
| 10am–12pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 12–2pm | 86 | 85 | 84 | 92 | 88 | 85 | 88 |
| 2–4pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 4–6pm | 79 | 79 | 81 | 80 | 81 | 82 | 80 |
| 6–8pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 8–10pm | 90 | 89 | 90 | 86 | 86 | 89 | 85 |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at KTN was 8–10pm — 87.8% of departures left on time across 1,051 flights. The weakest was 4–6pm at 80.1%.
The year at KTN
August was the hard month at KTN: 76% of departures left on time, across 790 flights. February was the easy one at 88.9%. 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 | 79.5% | 546 |
| February | 88.9% | 510 |
| March | 83.5% | 558 |
| April | 87.6% | 555 |
| May | 86.1% | 625 |
| June | 84.1% | 712 |
| July | 78.6% | 805 |
| August | 76% | 790 |
| September | 85.2% | 641 |
| October | 88.5% | 561 |
| November | 86.4% | 527 |
| December | 79.8% | 546 |
Airlines at KTN
Every airline with at least 100 departures from KTN, 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 | 83.7% | 62 min | 2.2% | 7,216 |
| SkyWest Airlines | 65.8% | 84 min | 1.3% | 160 |
What delays out of KTN were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 1,203 flights that departed KTN and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 63.7% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 21.2% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 63.7%
- Airline operations 21.2%
- Air traffic & airport volume 9%
- Severe weather 4.7%
- Security 1.4%
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 KTN
Of 7,374 scheduled arrivals into KTN, 80.5% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 1,276 arrivals that ran late, 63.4% 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 KTN
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.
KTN in one number
Ketchikan (KTN)
Rank 182 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 8–10pm. Hardest month: August.
Questions about KTN
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Ketchikan?
- 8–10pm. Departures in that band left on time 87.8% of the time across 1,051 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 4–6pm band was the weakest at 80.1%.
- What is the worst month to fly out of KTN?
- August: 76% of the departures that flew left on time, with 790 scheduled. February was the other end of the year at 88.9%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at KTN?
- Alaska Airlines — 83.7% of its 7,216 departures from KTN left on time. SkyWest Airlines sat at the other end at 65.8% over 160 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at KTN?
- 2.2% 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.