Norfolk, VA

What the Data Says About ORF

Norfolk, VA in Norfolk, Virginia handled 231,501 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 81.6% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 42,683 experienced delays, 3,197 were cancelled, and 232 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.38%, the diversion rate to 0.10%, and the average delay when departures run late is 78.5 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing ORF against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at ORF, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 39.2% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 32.7% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 22.1%. Weather contributes 5.9% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.1%. Travelers often overestimate the weather share; the BTS categorization shows late-arriving aircraft and carrier operations as the larger contributors.

Seasonally, September runs the cleanest at ORF with a 94.1% on-time rate, while July is the roughest at 87.6% — a 7-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in July, when average flights hit 3,601. The busiest route from ORF is to ORF (Norfolk), with 14,559 flights at a 79.1% on-time rate. Combine these numbers — 81.6% on-time, 78.5-minute average delay, 1.38% cancellation rate — and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Norfolk, VA.