Rockford, IL

What the Data Says About RFD

Rockford, IL in Rockford, Illinois handled 9,512 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 78.9% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 2,003 experienced delays, 127 were cancelled, and 9 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.34%, the diversion rate to 0.09%, and the average delay when departures run late is 84.9 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing RFD against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at RFD, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 43.7% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 27.3% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 19.2%. Weather contributes 9.4% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.4%. 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 RFD with a 89.4% on-time rate, while May is the roughest at 85.2% — a 4-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in March, when average flights hit 195. Combine these numbers — 78.9% on-time, 84.9-minute average delay, 1.34% cancellation rate — and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Rockford, IL.