Route · SFO → MSY · 2020–2025 BTS data
San Francisco to New Orleans
According to PlainFlights' route traffic ranking (BTS On-Time Performance total flights), SFO to MSY (San Francisco to New Orleans) ranks #3798 of 4927 tracked domestic routes by total flights (most flights = #1).
Data updated 2026-06-13
- 82.5%
- On-time
- +3.5 pts
- vs US avg
- 67 min
- Delay when late
- 2,044
- Flights
- #3798 of 4927
- Corpus placement
Cancelled
0.8%
Best Month
Oct 2025 96%
Worst Month
Apr 2024 80%
Distance
1,911 mi
Carriers
3
Monthly Performance
Recent 24 months of route data.
| Period | Flights | Delayed | Cancelled | Diverted | Carriers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2025 | 43 | 5 | 1 | 0 | UA |
| Nov 2025 | 56 | 9 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Oct 2025 | 56 | 2 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Sep 2025 | 36 | 2 | 0 | 0 | UA,AA |
| Aug 2025 | 31 | 3 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Jul 2025 | 31 | 13 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Jun 2025 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 2 | UA |
| May 2025 | 45 | 6 | 0 | 1 | UA |
| Apr 2025 | 51 | 3 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Mar 2025 | 48 | 15 | 1 | 0 | UA |
| Feb 2025 | 45 | 9 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Jan 2025 | 50 | 7 | 3 | 0 | UA |
| Dec 2024 | 44 | 10 | 0 | 1 | UA |
| Nov 2024 | 60 | 7 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Oct 2024 | 62 | 4 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Sep 2024 | 35 | 6 | 1 | 0 | UA |
| Aug 2024 | 31 | 6 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Jul 2024 | 31 | 14 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Jun 2024 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 1 | UA |
| May 2024 | 32 | 6 | 0 | 1 | UA |
| Apr 2024 | 60 | 12 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Mar 2024 | 62 | 11 | 0 | 0 | UA |
| Feb 2024 | 50 | 10 | 1 | 0 | UA |
| Jan 2024 | 31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | UA |
SFO–MSY seasonal on-time pattern
Best: October (95.0%) · weakest: July (67.7%)
Strongest calendar month
October
95.0% on-time · ~45 flights/mo
Busiest calendar month
March
~57 flights/mo avg
Weakest calendar month
July
67.7% on-time · ~31 flights/mo
Cancellation Rate
0.8%
8 of 1,050 flights
Diversion Rate
0.6%
6 of 1,050 flights
Explore origin & destination
On-time and delay data for the airports this route connects.
SFO - San Francisco
Full on-time, delay-cause, and seasonal performance for San Francisco, CA.
SFO on-time profileMSY - New Orleans
Full on-time, delay-cause, and seasonal performance for New Orleans, LA.
MSY on-time profileCompare the two airports
See SFO and MSY side by side on delays, cancellations, and reliability.
Compare SFO vs MSYOrigin-hub reliability standing
Mid-pack among SFO departures
From SFO, this corridor sits with 50 other 75–85% on-time routes out of 73 tracked departures, not the hub's reliability leaders (20 at ≥85%) and not the softest ( 3 below 75%). Destination: New Orleans · fleet on-time rank #2168 of 4927.
Similar routes
Other BTS-tracked routes with comparable performance or trip length to SFO–MSY.
Routes with a similar on-time rate
What the Data Says About SFO to MSY
Bureau of Transportation Statistics records show San Francisco to New Orleans (SFO to MSY) running a 82.5% on-time rate over 2,044 tracked flights, on the stronger end of a typical domestic pairing. When flights do run late, the average delay is 67.4 minutes. The 1,911-mile corridor is served by 3 carriers, and over the last 24 months 0.8% of 1,050 flights were cancelled, 0.6% diverted.
The monthly split is wide on this route: Oct 2025 posted the strongest performance at 96% on-time, while Apr 2024 came in at just 80% - a 16-point swing worth factoring into travel timing.
On the multi-year calendar, SFO–MSY peaks in October at 95.0% on-time while March carries the heaviest traffic (~57 flights per month) ; the softest month is July at 67.7%, a 27.3-point swing that repeats because the corridor's weather and holiday mix stays stable year to year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does SFO to MSY rank among US routes by traffic? ▼
How often are flights delayed from SFO to MSY? ▼
What is the cancellation rate for SFO to MSY? ▼
How far is the flight from SFO to MSY? ▼
When is the best time to fly from SFO to MSY? ▼
Airports on this route
Data source
Data Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), On-Time Performance Data. Statistics reflect cumulative performance across all available reporting periods.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Using SFO–MSY data
SFO–MSY runs 3.5 pts above the national 79% average; the remaining risk is month-to-month swing and carrier mix, not a weak headline rate.
- Compare SFO and MSY airport profiles: delay causes and top routes differ even on the same corridor. SFO airport
- If your dates flex, October (95.0% on-time) beats July (67.7%) on this corridor. Seasonal chart
- 4 other routes post a similar 82.5% on-time rate; compare before you commit to this pairing. Similar routes
On-time rate reflects the BTS historical average across all reporting carriers on this origin–destination pair, not any single flight or booking recommendation.
Every figure on PlainFlights is rendered directly from BTS On-Time Performance data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page aggregates this specific route's on-time performance and monthly trend, live from the dataset. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.