Airport · RDU · Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina
Raleigh/Durham, NC
Raleigh/Durham, NC posts below-median on-time performance among the 382 tracked U.S. airports, as a high-volume U.S. airport. According to the U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, drawn from 616,332 flights (2020–2025); its biggest delay driver is late aircraft.
Data updated 2026-06-13
- 81.6%
- On-time
- Top 71%
- on-time, US airports
- 78 min
- Delay when late
- 1.18%
- Cancelled
Key Performance Metrics
Total Flights
616,332
Best Month
Feb 93.2%
Worst Month
Jul 87.4%
Delayed
113,435
Cancelled
7,264
RDU on-time rate vs. the national average
Ahead of the U.S. average across all 382 tracked airports.
Where RDU sits among all 382 tracked airports
RDU's 81.6% on-time rate falls in the 80-85% band, the 192-airport band it shares.
National on-time-rate distribution
- 60-65% 1
1 airport between 60% and 65% on-time
1 airports
- 65-70% 4
4 airports between 65% and 70% on-time
4 airports
- 70-75% 9
9 airports between 70% and 75% on-time
9 airports
- 75-80% 48
48 airports between 75% and 80% on-time
48 airports
- 80-85%
192 airports between 80% and 85% on-time
192 airports
- 85-90%
116 airports between 85% and 90% on-time
116 airports
- 90-95% 12
12 airports between 90% and 95% on-time
12 airports
What this shows RDU is marked in the 80-85% band.
Delay Cause Breakdown
Top delay cause: Late Aircraft. Total delay minutes: 4,194,549.
RDU - seasonal on-time pattern
Best: February (93.2%) · worst: July (87.4%)
Seasonal Performance Patterns
Monthly averages across all years of data. Best month: February (93.2% on-time). Most delays: July (87.4% on-time).
| Month | Avg Flights | Avg Delayed | Avg Cancelled | On-Time % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December | 8,568 | 1,674 | 56 | 90.8% |
| November | 8,730 | 1,322 | 33 | 92.7% |
| October | 9,047 | 1,359 | 32 | 93% |
| September | 8,474 | 1,290 | 55 | 93% |
| August | 9,017 | 1,926 | 106 | 90.2% |
| July | 8,973 | 2,410 | 145 | 87.4% |
| June | 8,429 | 2,019 | 116 | 88.8% |
| May | 8,285 | 1,621 | 55 | 91% |
| April | 8,060 | 1,366 | 214 | 92.4% |
| March | 9,136 | 1,386 | 205 | 93% |
| February | 7,790 | 1,187 | 72 | 93.2% |
| January | 8,215 | 1,346 | 122 | 92.6% |
Year-Over-Year Performance
Annual flight volume and on-time trends at RDU.
RDU - on-time rate by year
2020–2025, year-over-year trend.
| Year | Flights | Delayed | Cancelled | On-Time % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 110,758 | 10,884 | 941 | 90.2% |
| 2024 | 122,630 | 11,763 | 924 | 90.4% |
| 2023 | 118,838 | 11,087 | 897 | 90.7% |
| 2022 | 108,094 | 10,251 | 1,685 | 90.5% |
| 2021 | 88,284 | 5,864 | 612 | 93.4% |
| 2020 | 67,728 | 2,638 | 2,205 | 96.1% |
Cancellation & Diversion Analysis
Flight disruption statistics for Raleigh/Durham, NC.
Cancellation Rate
1.18%
7,264 of 616,332 flights
Diversion Rate
0.10%
602 of 616,332 flights
Delay Rate
18.4%
113,435 of 616,332 flights
Monthly Performance
Recent 24 months of flight data.
| Period | Flights | Dep Delayed | Arr Delayed | Cancelled | Diverted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2025 | 9,604 | 1,195 | 1,319 | 82 | 4 |
| Nov 2025 | 9,590 | 875 | 990 | 98 | 8 |
| Oct 2025 | 9,861 | 937 | 1,068 | 31 | 8 |
| Sep 2025 | 8,969 | 644 | 731 | 23 | 6 |
| Aug 2025 | 9,274 | 985 | 1,081 | 62 | 12 |
| Jul 2025 | 9,815 | 1,384 | 1,504 | 187 | 25 |
| Jun 2025 | 9,724 | 1,228 | 1,464 | 102 | 10 |
| May 2025 | 9,601 | 908 | 1,152 | 59 | 10 |
| Apr 2025 | 9,061 | 755 | 932 | 31 | 6 |
| Mar 2025 | 9,156 | 762 | 848 | 45 | 11 |
| Feb 2025 | 7,696 | 599 | 730 | 100 | 5 |
| Jan 2025 | 8,407 | 612 | 730 | 121 | 7 |
| Dec 2024 | 10,017 | 955 | 1,029 | 20 | 6 |
| Nov 2024 | 10,124 | 638 | 679 | 4 | 1 |
| Oct 2024 | 10,718 | 667 | 756 | 46 | 4 |
| Sep 2024 | 10,209 | 755 | 836 | 50 | 15 |
| Aug 2024 | 11,068 | 1,359 | 1,531 | 185 | 14 |
| Jul 2024 | 11,335 | 1,662 | 1,831 | 241 | 16 |
| Jun 2024 | 11,017 | 1,271 | 1,405 | 120 | 21 |
| May 2024 | 10,981 | 1,287 | 1,522 | 60 | 17 |
| Apr 2024 | 10,026 | 879 | 1,051 | 33 | 9 |
| Mar 2024 | 9,659 | 909 | 1,064 | 24 | 10 |
| Feb 2024 | 8,493 | 518 | 663 | 23 | 5 |
| Jan 2024 | 8,983 | 863 | 1,127 | 118 | 7 |
Top Routes from RDU
Busiest routes to and from Raleigh/Durham, NC.
Airports With a Similar On-Time Rate
Other U.S. airports nationwide whose on-time rate is closest to Raleigh/Durham, NC's 81.6%.
Other Airports in North Carolina
Compare performance with other North Carolina airports.
Charlotte, NC
Charlotte · 2,345,248 flights
Greensboro/High Point, NC
Greensboro/High Point · 116,389 flights
Asheville, NC
Asheville · 114,713 flights
Wilmington, NC
Wilmington · 80,728 flights
Fayetteville, NC
Fayetteville · 22,542 flights
Jacksonville/Camp Lejeune, NC
Jacksonville/Camp Lejeune · 20,873 flights
Concord, NC
Concord · 10,857 flights
New Bern/Morehead/Beaufort, NC
New Bern/Morehead/Beaufort · 8,887 flights
Keep exploring
More flight data around Raleigh/Durham, NC.
North Carolina flight data
Statewide on-time and delay aggregates, plus every reporting airport in North Carolina.
View NC data →Airport rankings
See where RDU sits among U.S. airports on on-time rate and average delay.
Best on-time airports →Compare airports
Put RDU head-to-head with another airport on delays and reliability.
Open comparison tool →What the Data Says About RDU
Raleigh/Durham, NC in Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina handled 616,332 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 81.6% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 113,435 experienced delays, 7,264 were cancelled, and 602 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.18%, the diversion rate to 0.10%, and the average delay when departures run late is 77.6 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing RDU against other airports in the same state and nationally.
Breaking down what drives delays at RDU, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 41.9% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 30.4% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 23.9%. Weather contributes 3.8% 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, February runs the cleanest at RDU with a 93.2% on-time rate, while July is the roughest at 87.4% - a 6-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in March, when average flights hit 9,136. The busiest route connecting RDU is to ATL (Atlanta), with 25,309 flights at a 83.4% on-time rate. Combine these numbers - 81.6% on-time, 77.6-minute average delay, 1.18% cancellation rate, and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Raleigh/Durham, NC.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the on-time performance rate at Raleigh/Durham, NC (RDU)? ▼
What is the most common cause of delays at RDU? ▼
What is the average delay time at RDU? ▼
What is the best month to fly from RDU? ▼
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How many routes operate from RDU? ▼
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Flight Guides
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Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Using RDU's data
An airport-level on-time rate is a starting point, not a guarantee for your specific flight.
- Check the busiest route from RDU before you book a connection. See top routes
- Travel in February rather than July if your dates are flexible. Seasonal patterns
- Scores vary by airline and route within the same airport; check the specific carrier you're flying. Browse airlines
On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers at this airport, not any single flight or airline.
Related
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.