Airport · AVL · Asheville, North Carolina

Asheville, NC

Asheville, NC posts bottom-quartile on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a high-volume U.S. airport. According to the U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, drawn from 114,713 flights (2020–2025); its biggest delay driver is late aircraft.

Compiled by PlainFlights Editorial, Flight Performance Editorial Team

Data updated 2026-06-13

80%
On-time: Top 84%
on-time, US airports: 81 min
Delay when late: 1.56%
Cancelled

Key Performance Metrics

Total Flights

114,713

Best Month

Feb 92.9%

Worst Month

Jul 85.5%

Delayed

22,985

Cancelled

1,787

60-65%

1
65-70%

4
70-75%

9
75-80%

48
80-85%

192
85-90%

116
90-95%

12

What this shows AVL is marked in the 80-85% band.

Delay Cause Breakdown

Top delay cause: Late Aircraft. Total delay minutes: 909,329.

Late Aircraft 38.7% (352,080 min)

Carrier 32.4% (294,393 min)

NAS (National Aviation System) 20.8% (189,139 min)

Weather 7.9% (71,761 min)

Security 0.2% (1,956 min)

Seasonal Performance Patterns

Monthly averages across all years of data. Best month: February (92.9% on-time). Most delays: July (85.5% on-time).

Month	Avg Flights	Avg Delayed	Avg Cancelled	On-Time %
December	1,439	294	10	90.3%
November	1,526	243	5	92.1%
October	1,811	327	19	91%
September	1,655	279	31	91.8%
August	1,817	426	21	88.5%
July	1,891	564	26	85.5%
June	1,774	466	18	87%
May	1,614	320	42	90.3%
April	1,430	239	47	92%
March	1,569	259	40	92.4%
February	1,264	192	14	92.9%
January	1,328	224	26	91.9%

Year-Over-Year Performance

Annual flight volume and on-time trends at AVL.

Year	Flights	Delayed	Cancelled	On-Time %
2025	20,492	2,284	172	88.9%
2024	24,168	2,690	377	88.9%
2023	22,425	2,282	126	89.8%
2022	18,599	1,743	265	90.6%
2021	16,171	1,451	160	91%
2020	12,858	713	687	94.5%

Cancellation & Diversion Analysis

Flight disruption statistics for Asheville, NC.

Cancellation Rate

1.56%

1,787 of 114,713 flights

Diversion Rate

0.14%

165 of 114,713 flights

Delay Rate

20.0%

22,985 of 114,713 flights

Monthly Performance

Recent 24 months of flight data.

Period	Flights	Dep Delayed	Arr Delayed	Cancelled	Diverted
Dec 2025	1,430	192	216	12	3
Nov 2025	1,679	170	173	10	1
Oct 2025	2,046	225	221	4	0
Sep 2025	1,824	142	146	4	3
Aug 2025	1,946	227	255	11	5
Jul 2025	2,055	285	292	25	5
Jun 2025	1,989	285	305	23	2
May 2025	1,781	216	214	13	3
Apr 2025	1,600	141	164	3	4
Mar 2025	1,598	152	179	17	2
Feb 2025	1,304	132	137	26	3
Jan 2025	1,240	117	125	24	2
Dec 2024	1,520	187	166	6	3
Nov 2024	1,711	118	92	3	1
Oct 2024	2,187	151	146	85	2
Sep 2024	2,296	217	194	137	2
Aug 2024	2,392	343	296	41	6
Jul 2024	2,497	437	423	50	16
Jun 2024	2,381	369	295	22	9
May 2024	2,247	297	273	8	4
Apr 2024	2,001	185	167	3	1
Mar 2024	1,724	141	164	3	4
Feb 2024	1,506	70	84	3	3
Jan 2024	1,706	175	163	16	0

Top Routes from AVL

Busiest routes to and from Asheville, NC.

Route	Flights	On-Time	Distance
ATL (Atlanta) → AVL (Asheville)	11,365	87%	164 mi
AVL (Asheville) → ATL (Atlanta)	11,362	87.3%	164 mi
AVL (Asheville) → CLT (Charlotte)	11,352	81.7%	91 mi
CLT (Charlotte) → AVL (Asheville)	11,349	81.1%	91 mi
AVL (Asheville) → ORD (Chicago)	4,101	75.2%	536 mi
ORD (Chicago) → AVL (Asheville)	4,075	77%	536 mi
FLL (Fort Lauderdale) → AVL (Asheville)	3,481	67.8%	661 mi
AVL (Asheville) → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)	3,479	69%	661 mi
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → AVL (Asheville)	3,385	78.7%	848 mi
AVL (Asheville) → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)	3,382	78.2%	848 mi
LGA (New York) → AVL (Asheville)	3,165	85.4%	599 mi
AVL (Asheville) → LGA (New York)	3,136	81.1%	599 mi
SFB (Sanford) → AVL (Asheville)	2,648	71.5%	465 mi
AVL (Asheville) → SFB (Sanford)	2,642	73.9%	465 mi
PIE (St. Petersburg) → AVL (Asheville)	2,202	73.7%	519 mi
AVL (Asheville) → PIE (St. Petersburg)	2,173	72.7%	519 mi
AVL (Asheville) → DCA (Washington)	1,852	74.6%	384 mi
DCA (Washington) → AVL (Asheville)	1,852	79.2%	384 mi
AVL (Asheville) → EWR (Newark)	1,694	87.2%	583 mi
EWR (Newark) → AVL (Asheville)	1,693	86.1%	583 mi

Airports With a Similar On-Time Rate

Other U.S. airports nationwide whose on-time rate is closest to Asheville, NC's 80%.

Boston, MA

79.9% on-time 1,455,478 flights

New Orleans, LA

79.9% on-time 539,385 flights

Christiansted, VI

79.9% on-time 14,135 flights

Tampa, FL

79.8% on-time 860,941 flights

Hayden, CO

79.7% on-time 27,069 flights

Columbia, MO

80.3% on-time 19,935 flights

Other Airports in North Carolina

Compare performance with other North Carolina airports.

CLT 82%

Charlotte, NC

Charlotte · 2,345,248 flights

RDU 81.6%

Raleigh/Durham, NC

Raleigh/Durham · 616,332 flights

GSO 84.6%

Greensboro/High Point, NC

Greensboro/High Point · 116,389 flights

ILM 83.9%

Wilmington, NC

Wilmington · 80,728 flights

FAY 86.9%

Fayetteville, NC

Fayetteville · 22,542 flights

OAJ 87.4%

Jacksonville/Camp Lejeune, NC

Jacksonville/Camp Lejeune · 20,873 flights

USA 72.4%

Concord, NC

Concord · 10,857 flights

EWN 85.7%

New Bern/Morehead/Beaufort, NC

New Bern/Morehead/Beaufort · 8,887 flights

Keep exploring

More flight data around Asheville, NC.

North Carolina flight data

Statewide on-time and delay aggregates, plus every reporting airport in North Carolina.

View NC data →

Airport rankings

See where AVL sits among U.S. airports on on-time rate and average delay.

Best on-time airports →

Compare airports

Put AVL head-to-head with another airport on delays and reliability.

Open comparison tool →

What the Data Says About AVL

Asheville, NC in Asheville, North Carolina handled 114,713 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 80% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 22,985 experienced delays, 1,787 were cancelled, and 165 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.56%, the diversion rate to 0.14%, and the average delay when departures run late is 80.5 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing AVL against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at AVL, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 38.7% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 32.4% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 20.8%. Weather contributes 7.9% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.2%. Travelers often overestimate the weather share; the BTS categorization shows late-arriving aircraft and carrier operations as the larger contributors.

Seasonally, February runs the cleanest at AVL with a 92.9% on-time rate, while July is the roughest at 85.5% - a 7-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in July, when average flights hit 1,891. The busiest route connecting AVL is to ATL (Atlanta), with 11,365 flights at a 87% on-time rate. Combine these numbers - 80% on-time, 80.5-minute average delay, 1.56% cancellation rate, and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Asheville, NC.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the on-time performance rate at Asheville, NC (AVL)? ▼

Asheville, NC has an overall on-time departure rate of 80%. Out of 114,713 total flights tracked, 22,985 experienced delays and 1,787 were cancelled.

What is the most common cause of delays at AVL? ▼

The top delay cause at Asheville, NC is Late Aircraft. Late Aircraft accounts for 38.7% of all delay minutes.

What is the average delay time at AVL? ▼

The average delay at Asheville, NC is 80.5 minutes. This includes delays from carrier issues, weather, National Aviation System constraints, security, and late-arriving aircraft.

What is the best month to fly from AVL? ▼

Based on historical data, February has the best on-time performance at AVL with 92.9% of flights departing on time.

What is the worst month for delays at AVL? ▼

July tends to have the most delays at AVL, with an on-time rate of only 85.5%.

How many routes operate from AVL? ▼

Asheville, NC serves at least 20 routes. The busiest route is ATL to AVL (Atlanta - Asheville) with 11,365 flights.

What is the cancellation rate at AVL? ▼

Asheville, NC has a cancellation rate of 1.56%, based on 1,787 cancelled flights out of 114,713 total flights tracked.

Flight Guides

Data-driven guides to help you understand airport and flight performance.

Best & Worst Airlines for On-Time Performance

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Why Flights Get Cancelled

Cancellation causes broken down by data

How to Choose Reliable Flight Routes

Use delay data to pick flights that arrive on time

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Data Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), On-Time Performance Data (2020–2025). Statistics reflect cumulative performance across all available reporting periods. On-time rates exclude cancelled and diverted flights.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Using AVL's data

An airport-level on-time rate is a starting point, not a guarantee for your specific flight.

Check the busiest route from AVL before you book a connection. See top routes
Travel in February rather than July if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns
Scores vary by airline and route within the same airport; check the specific carrier you're flying. Browse airlines

On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers at this airport, not any single flight or airline.

All airports → | Rankings →

Data sourced from U.S. Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) On-Time Performance data. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFlights Editorial

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Airline on-time performance and operational reliability · 2025 Accessed 2026-07-23

Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. Airport figures are computed directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.