According to PlainFlights' airport traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), Cleveland, OH (CLE) ranks #46 of 382 tracked US airports by total flights (most flights = #1). Cleveland, OH posts below-median on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a high-volume U.S. airport.
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CLE on-time rate vs. the national average
Ahead of the U.S. average across all 382 tracked airports.
Delay Cause Breakdown
Top delay cause: Late Aircraft.
Total delay minutes: 2,822,297.
Late Aircraft38.2% (1,078,245 min)
Carrier32.4% (913,469 min)
NAS (National Aviation System)25.8% (727,261 min)
Weather3.5% (99,383 min)
Security0.1% (3,939 min)
CLE - seasonal on-time pattern
Best: September (94.1%) · worst: July (89.1%)
CLE - on-time rate by year
2020–2025, year-over-year trend.
CLE - taxi-out and taxi-in (monthly)
Average taxi-out 16.2 min · taxi-in 8.3 min over the last 24 reported months (U.S. airport mean taxi-out ≈ 16.4 min).
CLE's average taxi-out (16.2 min) sits near the recent U.S. airport mean (~16.4 min). Month-to-month, it swings from 14.0 min (October 2024) to 22.8 min (January 2025).
Two PlainFlights-derived comparison paths for Cleveland, OH, both outside Ohio 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 Cleveland, OH is the delay mix: Late Aircraft owns 38.2% of 2,822,297 delay minutes across 446,498 BTS flights. The on-time headline is 82% (3 pts above the 79% national average), with 80,317 delayed and 5,664 cancelled (1.27%).
Delay minutes concentrate in Late Aircraft (38.2% late-aircraft, 32.4% carrier, 25.8% NAS, 3.5% weather, 0.1% security). As a busy airport, that mix matters more for connection planning than for a thin schedule.
On the multi-year calendar, CLE is strongest in September (94.1% on-time) and weakest in July (89.1%), a 5.0-point swing. Volume peaks in March (~6,755 flights/month). The busiest connecting route is to ORD (Chicago) at 84.8% on-time. Field definitions: on-time performance explained.
Cleveland, OH vs. the national on-time distribution
On-time rate among all 382 tracked U.S. airports
82%Top 67%higher than 33% of 382 airports
Cleveland, OH
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.
CLE's on-time book is mid-pack; month and delay-cause mix move more than the headline rate.
Check the busiest route from CLE before you book a connection. See top routes →
Travel in September rather than July if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns →
Gate-to-wheels taxi-out averages 16.2 min here; check the monthly series before a tight connection. 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 Cleveland, OH's on-time rate?
Cleveland, OH (CLE) has a 82% on-time rate across 446,498 BTS-tracked flights (2020-2025), 3 pts above the 79% national flight-weighted average; that places it in roughly the below-median on-time performance.
How does CLE rank among U.S. airports by traffic volume?
Cleveland, OH ranks #46 of 382 tracked US airports by total BTS flights (most flights = #1), making it a high-volume U.S. airport.
What's the most common cause of delays at Cleveland, OH?
Late Aircraft is the leading delay cause at CLE, accounting for 38.2% of delay minutes. The full breakdown: 38.2% late-aircraft, 32.4% carrier, 25.8% NAS/air-traffic-control, 3.5% weather, and 0.1% security.
When is the best time to fly through Cleveland, OH?
September is historically CLE's strongest month at 94.1% on-time, while July is the weakest at 89.1%, a 5.0-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