Airport · TYS · Knoxville, Tennessee

Knoxville, TN

Knoxville, TN 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 157,494 flights (2020–2025); its biggest delay driver is late aircraft.

Compiled by PlainFlights Editorial, Flight Performance Editorial Team

Data updated 2026-06-13

81.9%
On-time: Top 68%
on-time, US airports: 83 min
Delay when late: 1.14%
Cancelled

Key Performance Metrics

Total Flights

157,494

Best Month

Apr 93.9%

Worst Month

Jul 90.1%

Delayed

28,457

Cancelled

1,788

60-65%

1
65-70%

4
70-75%

9
75-80%

48
80-85%

192
85-90%

116
90-95%

12

What this shows TYS is marked in the 80-85% band.

Delay Cause Breakdown

Top delay cause: Late Aircraft. Total delay minutes: 1,076,913.

Late Aircraft 39.2% (422,350 min)

Carrier 35.9% (386,946 min)

NAS (National Aviation System) 17.3% (186,201 min)

Weather 7.5% (80,448 min)

Security 0.1% (968 min)

Seasonal Performance Patterns

Monthly averages across all years of data. Best month: April (93.9% on-time). Most delays: July (90.1% on-time).

Month	Avg Flights	Avg Delayed	Avg Cancelled	On-Time %
December	2,084	421	10	91.4%
November	2,148	318	7	93.6%
October	2,422	391	7	92.8%
September	2,187	320	9	93.6%
August	2,341	428	24	92.6%
July	2,414	589	30	90.1%
June	2,257	497	18	91.1%
May	2,142	417	35	91.9%
April	2,033	306	63	93.9%
March	2,315	363	43	93.5%
February	1,890	321	18	93%
January	2,018	374	34	92.2%

Year-Over-Year Performance

Annual flight volume and on-time trends at TYS.

Year	Flights	Delayed	Cancelled	On-Time %
2025	26,532	2,953	262	88.9%
2024	32,564	2,669	257	91.8%
2023	27,905	2,077	132	92.6%
2022	25,763	1,839	275	92.9%
2021	23,552	1,444	141	93.9%
2020	21,178	901	721	95.7%

Cancellation & Diversion Analysis

Flight disruption statistics for Knoxville, TN.

Cancellation Rate

1.14%

1,788 of 157,494 flights

Diversion Rate

0.15%

229 of 157,494 flights

Delay Rate

18.1%

28,457 of 157,494 flights

Monthly Performance

Recent 24 months of flight data.

Period	Flights	Dep Delayed	Arr Delayed	Cancelled	Diverted
Dec 2025	1,935	290	326	13	7
Nov 2025	2,095	229	256	26	3
Oct 2025	2,555	291	328	5	1
Sep 2025	2,194	196	204	6	5
Aug 2025	2,348	239	304	27	6
Jul 2025	2,486	342	439	40	9
Jun 2025	2,454	335	456	28	12
May 2025	2,262	258	336	19	1
Apr 2025	2,114	187	256	12	1
Mar 2025	2,339	219	264	15	2
Feb 2025	1,825	185	265	30	2
Jan 2025	1,925	182	233	41	2
Dec 2024	2,776	270	346	7	6
Nov 2024	2,811	158	210	2	2
Oct 2024	3,384	206	250	16	2
Sep 2024	2,812	205	258	11	0
Aug 2024	2,953	244	358	34	5
Jul 2024	3,100	340	487	64	4
Jun 2024	2,934	259	350	19	3
May 2024	2,691	305	399	19	8
Apr 2024	2,420	172	246	9	5
Mar 2024	2,367	186	245	4	4
Feb 2024	2,080	97	140	2	2
Jan 2024	2,236	227	296	70	1

Top Routes from TYS

Busiest routes to and from Knoxville, TN.

Route	Flights	On-Time	Distance
ATL (Atlanta) → TYS (Knoxville)	14,336	86.7%	152 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → ATL (Atlanta)	14,331	91.2%	152 mi
CLT (Charlotte) → TYS (Knoxville)	11,170	79.5%	177 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → CLT (Charlotte)	10,914	82.5%	177 mi
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → TYS (Knoxville)	8,303	75.1%	772 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)	8,299	79.2%	772 mi
ORD (Chicago) → TYS (Knoxville)	7,733	77.6%	475 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → ORD (Chicago)	7,697	79.8%	475 mi
DCA (Washington) → TYS (Knoxville)	4,951	76.7%	437 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → DCA (Washington)	4,949	81.6%	437 mi
DEN (Denver) → TYS (Knoxville)	4,614	76.4%	1,162 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → DEN (Denver)	4,614	83.3%	1,162 mi
LGA (New York) → TYS (Knoxville)	4,441	83.6%	647 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → LGA (New York)	4,440	86.2%	647 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → DTW (Detroit)	3,206	93.3%	443 mi
DTW (Detroit) → TYS (Knoxville)	3,205	88.9%	443 mi
SFB (Sanford) → TYS (Knoxville)	2,745	68.9%	511 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → SFB (Sanford)	2,743	75.3%	511 mi
TYS (Knoxville) → PHL (Philadelphia)	1,879	85.8%	554 mi
PHL (Philadelphia) → TYS (Knoxville)	1,730	75.4%	554 mi

Airports With a Similar On-Time Rate

Other U.S. airports nationwide whose on-time rate is closest to Knoxville, TN's 81.9%.

Grand Rapids, MI

81.9% on-time 195,613 flights

Charlotte, NC

82% on-time 2,345,248 flights

Kansas City, MO

82% on-time 524,365 flights

Cleveland, OH

82% on-time 446,498 flights

Rochester, NY

82% on-time 126,934 flights

Lubbock, TX

82% on-time 69,433 flights

Other Airports in Tennessee

Compare performance with other Tennessee airports.

BNA 80.8%

Nashville, TN

Nashville · 1,046,597 flights

MEM 81.3%

Memphis, TN

Memphis · 251,985 flights

CHA 83.6%

Chattanooga, TN

Chattanooga · 66,136 flights

TRI 85.9%

Bristol/Johnson City/Kingsport, TN

Bristol/Johnson City/Kingsport · 27,896 flights

Keep exploring

More flight data around Knoxville, TN.

Tennessee flight data

Statewide on-time and delay aggregates, plus every reporting airport in Tennessee.

View TN data →

Airport rankings

See where TYS sits among U.S. airports on on-time rate and average delay.

Best on-time airports →

Compare airports

Put TYS head-to-head with another airport on delays and reliability.

Open comparison tool →

What the Data Says About TYS

Knoxville, TN in Knoxville, Tennessee handled 157,494 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 81.9% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 28,457 experienced delays, 1,788 were cancelled, and 229 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.14%, the diversion rate to 0.15%, and the average delay when departures run late is 82.6 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing TYS against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at TYS, Late Aircraft leads the pack. Late Aircraft accounts for 39.2% of total delay minutes, followed by Carrier at 35.9% and NAS (National Aviation System) at 17.3%. Weather contributes 7.5% 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, April runs the cleanest at TYS with a 93.9% on-time rate, while July is the roughest at 90.1% - a 4-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in October, when average flights hit 2,422. The busiest route connecting TYS is to ATL (Atlanta), with 14,336 flights at a 86.7% on-time rate. Combine these numbers - 81.9% on-time, 82.6-minute average delay, 1.14% cancellation rate, and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Knoxville, TN.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the on-time performance rate at Knoxville, TN (TYS)? ▼

Knoxville, TN has an overall on-time departure rate of 81.9%. Out of 157,494 total flights tracked, 28,457 experienced delays and 1,788 were cancelled.

What is the most common cause of delays at TYS? ▼

The top delay cause at Knoxville, TN is Late Aircraft. Late Aircraft accounts for 39.2% of all delay minutes.

What is the average delay time at TYS? ▼

The average delay at Knoxville, TN is 82.6 minutes. This includes delays from carrier issues, weather, National Aviation System constraints, security, and late-arriving aircraft.

What is the best month to fly from TYS? ▼

Based on historical data, April has the best on-time performance at TYS with 93.9% of flights departing on time.

What is the worst month for delays at TYS? ▼

July tends to have the most delays at TYS, with an on-time rate of only 90.1%.

How many routes operate from TYS? ▼

Knoxville, TN serves at least 20 routes. The busiest route is ATL to TYS (Atlanta - Knoxville) with 14,336 flights.

What is the cancellation rate at TYS? ▼

Knoxville, TN has a cancellation rate of 1.14%, based on 1,788 cancelled flights out of 157,494 total flights tracked.

Flight Guides

Data-driven guides to help you understand airport and flight performance.

Best & Worst Airlines for On-Time Performance

Which carriers consistently outperform peers

Why Flights Get Cancelled

Cancellation causes broken down by data

How to Choose Reliable Flight Routes

Use delay data to pick flights that arrive on time

Explore PlainFlights

All Airports

Browse US airports

Airlines

Compare carrier performance

Routes

Flight route performance

Rankings

Best on-time airports

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 TYS's data

An airport-level on-time rate is a starting point, not a guarantee for your specific flight.

Check the busiest route from TYS before you book a connection. See top routes
Travel in April 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.

All airports → | Rankings →

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 Editorial

Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Airline on-time performance and operational reliability · 2025 Accessed 2026-07-23

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.