Rochester, MN

What the Data Says About RST

Rochester, MN in Rochester, Minnesota handled 20,848 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 85.8% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 2,967 experienced delays, 289 were cancelled, and 8 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.39%, the diversion rate to 0.04%, and the average delay when departures run late is 90.2 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing RST against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at RST, Carrier leads the pack. Carrier accounts for 47.2% of total delay minutes, followed by Late Aircraft at 23.5% and Weather at 15.0%. Weather contributes 15.0% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.0%. 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 RST with a 95.6% on-time rate, while December is the roughest at 90.8% — a 5-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in March, when average flights hit 381. The busiest route from RST is to MSP (Minneapolis), with 5,351 flights at a 89.1% on-time rate. Combine these numbers — 85.8% on-time, 90.2-minute average delay, 1.39% cancellation rate — and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Rochester, MN.