Roanoke to Atlanta

What the Data Says About ROA to ATL

The Roanoke to Atlanta corridor (ROA → ATL) covers roughly 357 miles and is served by 9 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 5,601 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 87.9% on-time rate with an average delay of 93.9 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 1,525 flights were recorded on this pairing — 19 cancelled (1.2%) and 2 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 9 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 5,601 total flights analyzed, the 87.9% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 93.9-minute average delay applies only to flights that actually ran late, so it is not the average wait across all departures — the majority of flights on this route depart on time under the BTS definition of a delay (15+ minutes past schedule).

Looking at recent months, Feb 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 96% on-time, while Dec 2024 came in at 72% on-time — a 25-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the ROA to ATL route, the combination of a 87.9% on-time rate, 93.9-minute average delay, 1.2% recent cancellation rate, and 9 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.