Best time to fly out of Quad City (MLI)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Quad City: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 90.6% of the time, against 71.9% 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 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6–8am | 89 | 92 | 93 | 93 | 92 | 88 | 88 |
| 8–10am | 82 | 83 | 83 | 84 | 82 | 86 | 80 |
| 10am–12pm | 79 | 87 | 83 | 80 | 80 | 75 | 80 |
| 12–2pm | – | – | – | 86 | – | – | 87 |
| 2–4pm | 74 | 79 | 80 | 80 | 79 | 77 | 74 |
| 4–6pm | 73 | 82 | 73 | 75 | 72 | 77 | 68 |
| 6–8pm | 71 | – | – | – | 72 | – | 72 |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at MLI was 6–8am — 90.6% of departures left on time across 2,977 flights. The weakest was 6–8pm at 71.9%. 6–8am departures from MLI left on time 90.6% of the time across 2,977 flights; 6–8pm departures, 71.9% across 348. That is a gap of 18.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at MLI
July was the hard month at MLI: 76.8% of departures left on time, across 1,002 flights. October was the easy one at 89.7%. 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 | 77.8% | 913 |
| February | 82.6% | 872 |
| March | 79.4% | 1,082 |
| April | 81.9% | 1,086 |
| May | 80.3% | 1,194 |
| June | 80.4% | 1,027 |
| July | 76.8% | 1,002 |
| August | 81.3% | 975 |
| September | 88.3% | 887 |
| October | 89.7% | 1,037 |
| November | 84.8% | 1,050 |
| December | 80.4% | 1,014 |
Airlines at MLI
Every airline with at least 100 departures from MLI, 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 | 80.1% | 111 min | 2.8% | 5,091 |
| Envoy Air | 84% | 74 min | 2.1% | 2,846 |
| PSA Airlines | 81.3% | 120 min | 3.1% | 1,637 |
| Allegiant Air | 81.1% | 89 min | 0.7% | 1,438 |
| Endeavor Air | 87.1% | 90 min | 1.6% | 1,094 |
What delays out of MLI were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 2,486 flights that departed MLI and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 35.9% put down to airline operations and 35.3% to late-arriving aircraft.
- Late-arriving aircraft 35.3%
- Airline operations 35.9%
- Air traffic & airport volume 17.9%
- Severe weather 10.8%
- 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 MLI
Of 12,140 scheduled arrivals into MLI, 74.6% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 2,802 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 MLI
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.
- ORD 74.5% on time · 4,678 flights
- DFW 82.7% on time · 2,509 flights
- CLT 79.7% on time · 1,318 flights
- DEN 82% on time · 1,099 flights
- ATL 85.6% on time · 1,097 flights
- LAS 83.7% on time · 313 flights
- PGD 78.6% on time · 283 flights
- SFB 77.1% on time · 278 flights
- AZA 78.6% on time · 269 flights
- PIE 76.5% on time · 253 flights
MLI in one number
Quad City (MLI)
Rank 156 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: July.
Questions about MLI
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Quad City?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 90.6% of the time across 2,977 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 6–8pm band was the weakest at 71.9%.
- Is the early flight out of MLI really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from MLI left on time 90.6% of the time across 2,977 flights; 6–8pm departures, 71.9% across 348. That is a gap of 18.7 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of MLI?
- July: 76.8% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,002 scheduled. October was the other end of the year at 89.7%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at MLI?
- Endeavor Air — 87.1% of its 1,094 departures from MLI left on time. SkyWest Airlines sat at the other end at 80.1% over 5,091 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at MLI?
- 2.3% 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.