According to PlainFlights' airport traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), Madison, WI (MSN) ranks #94 of 382 tracked US airports by total flights (most flights = #1). Madison, WI posts below-median on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a high-volume U.S. airport.
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MSN 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: 912,197.
Late Aircraft31.9% (290,791 min)
Carrier42.7% (389,857 min)
NAS (National Aviation System)17.2% (156,739 min)
Weather8.1% (74,192 min)
Security0.1% (618 min)
MSN - seasonal on-time pattern
Best: October (94.5%) · worst: December (90.8%)
MSN - on-time rate by year
2020–2025, year-over-year trend.
MSN - taxi-out and taxi-in (monthly)
Average taxi-out 16.2 min · taxi-in 5.1 min over the last 24 reported months (U.S. airport mean taxi-out ≈ 16.4 min).
MSN's average taxi-out (16.2 min) sits near the recent U.S. airport mean (~16.4 min). Month-to-month, it swings from 13.7 min (October 2024) to 20.1 min (December 2025).
Two PlainFlights-derived comparison paths for Madison, WI, both outside Wisconsin 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 Madison, WI is the delay mix: Carrier owns 42.7% of 912,197 delay minutes across 127,239 BTS flights. The on-time headline is 83.1% (4.1 pts above the 79% national average), with 21,470 delayed and 1,393 cancelled (1.09%).
Delay minutes concentrate in Carrier (31.9% late-aircraft, 42.7% carrier, 17.2% NAS, 8.1% 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, MSN is strongest in October (94.5% on-time) and weakest in December (90.8%), a 3.7-point swing. Volume peaks in October (~1,966 flights/month). The busiest connecting route is to ORD (Chicago) at 80.7% on-time. Field definitions: on-time performance explained.
Madison, WI 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
Madison, WI
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.
MSN's on-time book is mid-pack; month and delay-cause mix move more than the headline rate.
Check the busiest route from MSN before you book a connection. See top routes →
Travel in October rather than December 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 Madison, WI's on-time rate?
Madison, WI (MSN) has a 83.1% on-time rate across 127,239 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 MSN rank among U.S. airports by traffic volume?
Madison, WI ranks #94 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 Madison, WI?
Carrier is the leading delay cause at MSN, accounting for 42.7% of delay minutes. The full breakdown: 31.9% late-aircraft, 42.7% carrier, 17.2% NAS/air-traffic-control, 8.1% weather, and 0.1% security.
When is the best time to fly through Madison, WI?
October is historically MSN's strongest month at 94.5% on-time, while December is the weakest at 90.8%, a 3.7-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