Best time to fly out of McGhee Tyson (TYS)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at McGhee Tyson: departures in the Before 6am band left on time 91.8% of the time, against 64.6% in the 8–10pm 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 | 91 | 91 | 92 | 93 | 92 | 91 | 92 |
| 6–8am | 88 | 90 | 91 | 91 | 90 | 90 | 88 |
| 8–10am | 89 | 88 | 90 | 89 | 91 | 87 | 90 |
| 10am–12pm | 83 | 84 | 86 | 83 | 81 | 82 | 82 |
| 12–2pm | 80 | 84 | 85 | 84 | 80 | 80 | 78 |
| 2–4pm | 78 | 79 | 79 | 75 | 74 | 76 | 73 |
| 4–6pm | 75 | 78 | 77 | 75 | 76 | 76 | 72 |
| 6–8pm | 66 | 74 | 70 | 69 | 66 | 63 | 61 |
| 8–10pm | 65 | – | – | 63 | 70 | 69 | 57 |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at TYS was Before 6am — 91.8% of departures left on time across 2,558 flights. The weakest was 8–10pm at 64.6%. 6–8am departures from TYS left on time 89.7% of the time across 8,892 flights; 6–8pm departures, 66.7% across 4,523. That is a gap of 23 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at TYS
July was the hard month at TYS: 76% of departures left on time, across 4,146 flights. November was the easy one at 85.3%. 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 | 78.9% | 3,000 |
| February | 84% | 2,768 |
| March | 81.3% | 3,473 |
| April | 84.5% | 3,419 |
| May | 78.2% | 3,784 |
| June | 76.4% | 4,022 |
| July | 76% | 4,146 |
| August | 81.9% | 3,973 |
| September | 84.2% | 3,751 |
| October | 84.9% | 4,317 |
| November | 85.3% | 3,609 |
| December | 80% | 3,504 |
Airlines at TYS
Every airline with at least 100 departures from TYS, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA Airlines | 79.1% | 99 min | 2.8% | 9,885 |
| Allegiant Air | 77.9% | 85 min | 0.9% | 9,031 |
| SkyWest Airlines | 83.6% | 107 min | 1.5% | 4,689 |
| Delta Air Lines | 87% | 81 min | 1.4% | 4,633 |
| American Airlines | 74.2% | 107 min | 2.6% | 4,613 |
| Endeavor Air | 89.7% | 89 min | 1.7% | 4,146 |
| Envoy Air | 81.9% | 62 min | 0.9% | 2,369 |
| Republic Airways | 85% | 96 min | 3% | 1,997 |
| United Airlines | 87.6% | 80 min | 1.1% | 1,234 |
| Southwest Airlines | 78.1% | 50 min | 0.2% | 635 |
| Frontier Airlines | 73.8% | 83 min | 0.7% | 534 |
What delays out of TYS were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 8,495 flights that departed TYS and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 40% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 35.6% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 40%
- Airline operations 35.6%
- Air traffic & airport volume 16.3%
- Severe weather 7.9%
- Security 0.2%
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 TYS
Of 43,770 scheduled arrivals into TYS, 74.1% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 10,545 arrivals that ran late, 51% 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 TYS
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.
- ATL 88.6% on time · 6,348 flights
- ORD 75.2% on time · 5,728 flights
- CLT 78.1% on time · 5,459 flights
- DFW 76.5% on time · 4,463 flights
- DCA 76.4% on time · 3,241 flights
- DEN 84.4% on time · 2,848 flights
- LGA 85.2% on time · 2,657 flights
- SFB 73.8% on time · 1,890 flights
- PIE 76.1% on time · 1,455 flights
- PHL 85.1% on time · 1,284 flights
TYS in one number
McGhee Tyson (TYS)
Rank 85 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: Before 6am. Hardest month: July.
Questions about TYS
- What is the best time of day to fly out of McGhee Tyson?
- Before 6am. Departures in that band left on time 91.8% of the time across 2,558 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 8–10pm band was the weakest at 64.6%.
- Is the early flight out of TYS really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from TYS left on time 89.7% of the time across 8,892 flights; 6–8pm departures, 66.7% across 4,523. That is a gap of 23 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of TYS?
- July: 76% of the departures that flew left on time, with 4,146 scheduled. November was the other end of the year at 85.3%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at TYS?
- Endeavor Air — 89.7% of its 4,146 departures from TYS left on time. Frontier Airlines sat at the other end at 73.8% over 534 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at TYS?
- 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.