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Airport · OTZ · Kotzebue, Alaska

Kotzebue, AK

According to PlainFlights' airport traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), Kotzebue, AK (OTZ) ranks #318 of 382 tracked US airports by total flights (most flights = #1). Kotzebue, AK posts top-10% on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a smaller regional airport.

Data updated 2026-06-13

88.7%
On-time
Top 7%
on-time, US airports
59 min
Delay when late
2.76%
Cancelled
#318 of 382
Corpus placement
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OTZ on-time rate vs. the national average

Ahead of the U.S. average across all 382 tracked airports.

0%100%U.S. average79%88.7%

Delay Cause Breakdown

Top delay cause: Late Aircraft. Total delay minutes: 17,355.

Late Aircraft 80.3% (13,931 min)
Carrier 7.0% (1,207 min)
NAS (National Aviation System) 8.7% (1,518 min)
Weather 0.9% (162 min)
Security 3.1% (537 min)

OTZ - seasonal on-time pattern

Best: May (98%) · worst: December (87.5%)

85%90%95%100% JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec 87.5%

OTZ - on-time rate by year

2020–2025, year-over-year trend.

93%94%95%96%97% 202020212022202320242025 94.6% 95.7% ▲ +1.2%

OTZ - taxi-out and taxi-in (monthly)

Average taxi-out 9.6 min · taxi-in 3.9 min over the last 24 reported months (U.S. airport mean taxi-out ≈ 16.4 min).

5 min10 min15 min Jan 24Dec 25 6.4 min 8.9 min ▲ +39.1%

OTZ's average taxi-out (9.6 min) stays shorter than the recent U.S. airport mean (~16.4 min). Even the heaviest month (January 2025, 13.4 min) is milder than many hubs' typical book.

Cancellation & Diversion Analysis

Flight disruption statistics for Kotzebue, AK.

Cancellation Rate

2.76%

164 of 5,950 flights

Diversion Rate

0.07%

4 of 5,950 flights

Delay Rate

11.3%

675 of 5,950 flights

Top Routes from OTZ

Busiest routes to and from Kotzebue, AK.

Filter routes

Route Flights On-Time Distance
OTZ (Kotzebue) → ANC (Anchorage) 2,558 89.7% 548 mi
ANC (Anchorage) → OTZ (Kotzebue) 1,490 89.3% 548 mi
OME (Nome) → OTZ (Kotzebue) 821 86% 183 mi

Nationwide peers by on-time rate & flight volume

Two PlainFlights-derived comparison paths for Kotzebue, 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.

Similar on-time rate

Nearest out-of-state BTS on-time rate (this airport: 88.7%).

Walla Walla, WA

Walla Walla, WA

88.8% on-time 4,519 flights

Pueblo, CO

Pueblo, CO

88.8% on-time 3,776 flights

Sun Valley/Hailey/Ketchum, ID

Sun Valley/Hailey/Ketchum, ID

88.6% on-time 22,928 flights

Aberdeen, SD

Aberdeen, SD

88.6% on-time 8,753 flights

Similar flight volume

Nearest out-of-state total flights (this airport: 5,950).

Kearney, NE

Kearney, NE

5,971 flights 85.8% on-time

Mason City, IA

Mason City, IA

5,851 flights 83.4% on-time

Fort Dodge, IA

Fort Dodge, IA

5,848 flights 83.4% on-time

Ithaca/Cortland, NY

Ithaca/Cortland, NY

6,186 flights 87.6% on-time

Other Airports in Alaska

Compare performance with other Alaska airports.

ANC 82.6%

Anchorage, AK

Anchorage · 214,443 flights
JNU 85.3%

Juneau, AK

Juneau · 52,533 flights
FAI 83.1%

Fairbanks, AK

Fairbanks · 44,233 flights
KTN 84.3%

Ketchikan, AK

Ketchikan · 27,238 flights
SIT 82.7%

Sitka, AK

Sitka · 14,900 flights
ADQ 87%

Kodiak, AK

Kodiak · 9,654 flights
PSG 85.4%

Petersburg, AK

Petersburg · 8,696 flights
WRG 84.9%

Wrangell, AK

Wrangell · 8,696 flights

OTZ delay-share reading

The standout signal at Kotzebue, AK is the delay mix: Late Aircraft owns 80.3% of 17,355 delay minutes across 5,950 BTS flights. The on-time headline is 88.7% (9.7 pts above the 79% national average), with 675 delayed and 164 cancelled (2.76%).

Delay minutes concentrate in Late Aircraft (80.3% late-aircraft, 7.0% carrier, 8.7% NAS, 0.9% weather, 3.1% security). As a quieter airport, a single late inbound can swing the month more than at a mega-hub.

On the multi-year calendar, OTZ is strongest in May (98% on-time) and weakest in December (87.5%), a 10.5-point swing. Volume peaks in March (~94 flights/month). The busiest connecting route is to ANC (Anchorage) at 89.7% on-time. Field definitions: on-time performance explained.

Statewide aggregates for Alaska: Alaska flight data.

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.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Using OTZ's data

OTZ's on-time book is stronger than most peers; the remaining risk sits in the delay mix, not a weak headline rate.

  • Check the busiest route from OTZ before you book a connection. See top routes
  • Travel in May rather than December if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns
  • Gate-to-wheels taxi-out averages 9.6 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.

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

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Airline on-time performance and operational reliability · 2025

Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. Airport figures are computed directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.