Best time to fly out of New York Stewart (SWF)
The early-flight folk wisdom bends at New York Stewart: the steadiest stretch was the 10am–12pm band at 86.6%, while 6–8pm departures managed 68.6%. 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 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10am–12pm | 88 | – | – | – | 85 | – | – |
| 12–2pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2–4pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 4–6pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6–8pm | 69 | – | – | 70 | 65 | – | 70 |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at SWF was 10am–12pm — 86.6% of departures left on time across 216 flights. The weakest was 6–8pm at 68.6%.
The year at SWF
July was the hard month at SWF: 59.1% of departures left on time, across 152 flights. November was the easy one at 80.9%. 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 | 76% | 123 |
| February | 78.1% | 133 |
| March | 69.8% | 141 |
| April | 72.3% | 130 |
| May | 74.2% | 120 |
| June | 70.7% | 143 |
| July | 59.1% | 152 |
| August | 73% | 128 |
| September | Not enough flights to say | 73 |
| October | 80.6% | 110 |
| November | 80.9% | 115 |
| December | 76% | 132 |
Airlines at SWF
Every airline with at least 100 departures from SWF, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allegiant Air | 73.7% | 96 min | 1.5% | 1,499 |
What delays out of SWF were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 413 flights that departed SWF and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 43.2% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 24.4% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 43.2%
- Airline operations 24.4%
- Air traffic & airport volume 23.3%
- Severe weather 9%
- 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 SWF
Of 1,499 scheduled arrivals into SWF, 81% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 263 arrivals that ran late, 51.3% 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 SWF
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.
SWF in one number
New York Stewart (SWF)
Rank 308 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 10am–12pm. Hardest month: July.
Questions about SWF
- What is the best time of day to fly out of New York Stewart?
- 10am–12pm. Departures in that band left on time 86.6% of the time across 216 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 6–8pm band was the weakest at 68.6%.
- What is the worst month to fly out of SWF?
- July: 59.1% of the departures that flew left on time, with 152 scheduled. November was the other end of the year at 80.9%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- How often are flights cancelled at SWF?
- 1.5% 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.