According to PlainFlights' airport traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), Sault Ste. Marie, MI (CIU) ranks #264 of 382 tracked US airports by total flights (most flights = #1). Sault Ste. Marie, MI posts above-median on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a smaller regional airport.
Compare CIU to another hub, filter routes, or browse airline stats without leaving this profile.
CIU on-time rate vs. the national average
Ahead of the U.S. average across all 382 tracked airports.
Delay Cause Breakdown
Top delay cause: Carrier.
Total delay minutes: 93,640.
Late Aircraft1.7% (1,610 min)
Carrier68.8% (64,427 min)
NAS (National Aviation System)3.4% (3,224 min)
Weather25.8% (24,127 min)
Security0.3% (252 min)
CIU - seasonal on-time pattern
Best: November (94.5%) · worst: December (88%)
CIU - on-time rate by year
2020–2025, year-over-year trend.
CIU - taxi-out and taxi-in (monthly)
Average taxi-out 23 min · taxi-in 4.5 min over the last 24 reported months (U.S. airport mean taxi-out ≈ 16.4 min).
CIU's average taxi-out (23 min) runs longer than the recent U.S. airport mean (~16.4 min). The heaviest month in this window is December 2025 at 37.1 min; the lightest is September 2024 at 16.5 min.
Cancellation & Diversion Analysis
Flight disruption statistics for Sault Ste. Marie, MI.
Two PlainFlights-derived comparison paths for Sault Ste. Marie, MI, both outside Michigan so the neighborhoods are not same-state geography. Axes stay disjoint: volume peers exclude the on-time peer set. Same-state compare stays below.
The standout signal at Sault Ste. Marie, MI is the delay mix: Carrier owns 68.8% of 93,640 delay minutes across 8,922 BTS flights. The on-time headline is 84.6% (5.6 pts above the 79% national average), with 1,373 delayed and 68 cancelled (0.76%).
Delay minutes concentrate in Carrier (1.7% late-aircraft, 68.8% carrier, 3.4% NAS, 25.8% weather, 0.3% security). As a quieter airport, a single late inbound can swing the month more than at a mega-hub.
On the multi-year calendar, CIU is strongest in November (94.5% on-time) and weakest in December (88%), a 6.5-point swing. Volume peaks in August (~133 flights/month). The busiest connecting route is to MSP (Minneapolis) at 86.6% on-time. Field definitions: on-time performance explained.
Sault Ste. Marie, MI vs. the national on-time distribution
On-time rate among all 382 tracked U.S. airports
84.6%Top 37%higher than 63% of 382 airports
Sault Ste. Marie, MI
60%95%
U.S. airports by on-time rate, bucketed by value
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more airports. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
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.
CIU's on-time book is mid-pack; month and delay-cause mix move more than the headline rate.
Check the busiest route from CIU before you book a connection. See top routes →
Travel in November rather than December if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns →
Build extra connection buffer when taxi-out spikes. December 2025 averaged 37.1 min. Taxi times →
On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers at this airport, not any single flight or airline.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Sault Ste. Marie, MI's on-time rate?
Sault Ste. Marie, MI (CIU) has a 84.6% on-time rate across 8,922 BTS-tracked flights (2020-2025), 5.6 pts above the 79% national flight-weighted average; that places it in roughly the above-median on-time performance.
How does CIU rank among U.S. airports by traffic volume?
Sault Ste. Marie, MI ranks #264 of 382 tracked US airports by total BTS flights (most flights = #1), making it a smaller regional airport.
What's the most common cause of delays at Sault Ste. Marie, MI?
Carrier is the leading delay cause at CIU, accounting for 68.8% of delay minutes. The full breakdown: 1.7% late-aircraft, 68.8% carrier, 3.4% NAS/air-traffic-control, 25.8% weather, and 0.3% security.
When is the best time to fly through Sault Ste. Marie, MI?
November is historically CIU's strongest month at 94.5% on-time, while December is the weakest at 88%, a 6.5-point swing across the BTS historical record.
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