According to PlainFlights' airport traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), Fairbanks, AK (FAI) ranks #158 of 382 tracked US airports by total flights (most flights = #1). Fairbanks, AK posts below-median on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a mid-size U.S. airport.
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FAI on-time rate vs. the national average
Ahead of the U.S. average across all 382 tracked airports.
Volume vs. on-time rate
Where Fairbanks, AK sits on volume vs. on-time rate
Among the 382 U.S. airports in the BTS corpus, Fairbanks, AK handles more flight
volume than 59% of them, and has a higher on-time rate than
46% of them, placing it in the quadrant for busy and delay-prone.
Flight volume and on-time rate are independent figures: a busy airport can still run
reliably, and a quiet one can still run late.
Fairbanks, AK vs. a 29-airport national peer sample, volume percentile vs. on-time-rate percentile.
Total flights (2020-2025): 44,233 ·
On-time rate: 83.1%
Delay Cause Breakdown
Top delay cause: Late Aircraft.
Total delay minutes201,650 min
Late Aircraft88,394 min · 44%
Carrier73,839 min · 37%
NAS (National Aviation System)34,662 min · 17%
Weather4,542 min · 2%
Security213 min · 0%
Source: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, On-Time Performance
FAI - seasonal on-time pattern
Best: April (95.1%) · worst: December (85%)
FAI - on-time rate by year
2020–2025, year-over-year trend.
FAI - taxi-out and taxi-in (monthly)
Average taxi-out 16.3 min · taxi-in 4.1 min over the last 24 reported months (U.S. airport mean taxi-out ≈ 16.4 min).
FAI's average taxi-out (16.3 min) sits near the recent U.S. airport mean (~16.4 min). Month-to-month, it swings from 12.7 min (May 2025) to 23.0 min (November 2024).
Two PlainFlights-derived comparison paths for Fairbanks, AK, both outside Alaska 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 Fairbanks, AK is the delay mix: Late Aircraft owns 43.8% of 201,650 delay minutes across 44,233 BTS flights. The on-time headline is 83.1% (4.1 pts above the 79% national average), with 7,479 delayed and 352 cancelled (0.80%).
Delay minutes concentrate in Late Aircraft (43.8% late-aircraft, 36.6% carrier, 17.2% NAS, 2.3% weather, 0.1% security). Mid-volume books still show a clear delay fingerprint rather than a weather-only story.
On the multi-year calendar, FAI is strongest in April (95.1% on-time) and weakest in December (85%), a 10.1-point swing. Volume peaks in August (~827 flights/month). The busiest connecting route is to SEA (Seattle) at 76.4% on-time. Field definitions: on-time performance explained.
Fairbanks, AK vs. the national on-time distribution
On-time rate among all 382 tracked U.S. airports
83.1%Top 54%higher than 46% of 382 airports
Fairbanks, AK
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.
FAI's on-time book is mid-pack; month and delay-cause mix move more than the headline rate.
Check the busiest route from FAI before you book a connection. See top routes →
Travel in April rather than December if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns →
Gate-to-wheels taxi-out averages 16.3 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 Fairbanks, AK's on-time rate?
Fairbanks, AK (FAI) has a 83.1% on-time rate across 44,233 BTS-tracked flights (2020-2025), 4.1 pts above the 79% national flight-weighted average; that places it in roughly the below-median on-time performance.
How does FAI rank among U.S. airports by traffic volume?
Fairbanks, AK ranks #158 of 382 tracked US airports by total BTS flights (most flights = #1), making it a mid-size U.S. airport.
What's the most common cause of delays at Fairbanks, AK?
Late Aircraft is the leading delay cause at FAI, accounting for 43.8% of delay minutes. The full breakdown: 43.8% late-aircraft, 36.6% carrier, 17.2% NAS/air-traffic-control, 2.3% weather, and 0.1% security.
When is the best time to fly through Fairbanks, AK?
April is historically FAI's strongest month at 95.1% on-time, while December is the weakest at 85%, a 10.1-point swing across the BTS historical record.