Watertown, SD

What the Data Says About ATY

Watertown, SD in Watertown, South Dakota handled 3,061 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 87.6% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 380 experienced delays, 46 were cancelled, and 7 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.50%, the diversion rate to 0.23%, and the average delay when departures run late is 111.4 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing ATY against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at ATY, Carrier leads the pack. Carrier accounts for 56.4% of total delay minutes, followed by Late Aircraft at 17.6% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 13.2%. Weather contributes 12.8% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.0%. Travelers often overestimate the weather share; the BTS categorization shows late-arriving aircraft and carrier operations as the larger contributors.

Seasonally, May runs the cleanest at ATY with a 97.8% on-time rate, while February is the roughest at 85.4% — a 12-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in March, when average flights hit 115. The busiest route from ATY is to DEN (Denver), with 763 flights at a 83.7% on-time rate. Combine these numbers — 87.6% on-time, 111.4-minute average delay, 1.50% cancellation rate — and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Watertown, SD.