Southwest Airlines Delays
76.9% on-time over the last 12 months · 1987–2026
1,392,049Flights
76.9%On-time
13.7 minAvg delay
0.9%Cancelled
Delay causes (last 12 months)
- Air carrier27.7%
- Extreme weather2.5%
- National Aviation System18.5%
- Security0.3%
- Late-arriving aircraft51%
By year
| Year | Flights | On-time | Avg delay | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 565,543 | 77.7% | 12.5 min | 1.1% |
| 2025 | 1,391,885 | 78.4% | 13.3 min | 0.8% |
| 2024 | 1,419,419 | 79.2% | 12.2 min | 0.8% |
| 2023 | 1,438,465 | 78% | 12.1 min | 1% |
| 2022 | 1,307,149 | 75.7% | 13.7 min | 3.3% |
| 2021 | 1,064,640 | 77.5% | 12.6 min | 2.2% |
| 2020 | 961,276 | 93.6% | 3.4 min | 8.1% |
| 2019 | 1,363,946 | 82.3% | 10.2 min | 2.5% |
| 2018 | 1,352,552 | 80.3% | 11.1 min | 1.4% |
| 2017 | 1,329,444 | 79.7% | 11.1 min | 1.4% |
| 2016 | 1,299,444 | 81.8% | 10.2 min | 1.2% |
| 2015 | 1,261,855 | 80.7% | 11.1 min | 1.3% |
| 2014 | 1,174,633 | 74% | 14.7 min | 1.3% |
| 2013 | 1,130,704 | 77.3% | 11.9 min | 0.7% |
| 2012 | 1,140,535 | 83.8% | 9 min | 0.8% |
| 2011 | 1,155,717 | 82.2% | 10.1 min | 1.1% |
| 2010 | 1,124,487 | 80.3% | 10.3 min | 1% |
| 2009 | 1,132,278 | 83.6% | 8.8 min | 0.8% |
| 2008 | 1,201,754 | 81.3% | 10.6 min | 1% |
| 2007 | 1,168,871 | 80.8% | 10.5 min | 0.9% |
| 2006 | 1,099,321 | 80.9% | 10.1 min | 0.8% |
| 2005 | 1,036,034 | 81.4% | 9.6 min | 0.8% |
| 2004 | 990,404 | 80.9% | 10 min | 1% |
| 2003 | 958,566 | 87.2% | 6.7 min | 1% |
| 2002 | 956,745 | 83.5% | 8.2 min | 1.1% |
| 2001 | 957,145 | 83.3% | 8.6 min | 1.8% |
| 2000 | 911,699 | 75.9% | 12.9 min | 1% |
| 1999 | 853,683 | 80.7% | 10.2 min | 0.9% |
| 1998 | 815,069 | 81.7% | 9.8 min | 1.1% |
| 1997 | 794,849 | 83% | 9 min | 1.1% |
| 1996 | 757,419 | 82.8% | 9.2 min | 1.2% |
| 1995 | 693,101 | 83.2% | 8.6 min | 1.2% |
| 1994 | 565,426 | 87% | 6.9 min | 0.4% |
| 1993 | 488,332 | 90.1% | 5.3 min | 0.5% |
| 1992 | 422,912 | 92.4% | 4.1 min | 0.3% |
| 1991 | 368,734 | 84.8% | 7.6 min | 0.7% |
| 1990 | 322,759 | 81.3% | 9.1 min | 0.7% |
| 1989 | 288,802 | 81.1% | 8.9 min | 0.7% |
| 1988 | 262,422 | 87.6% | 6.3 min | 0.6% |
| 1987 | 61,975 | 81.6% | 8.7 min | 1% |
Worst-performing routes
- San Diego ↔ San Francisco58.4% on-time
- Denver ↔ San Francisco58.7% on-time
- Las Vegas ↔ San Francisco61.3% on-time
- Phoenix ↔ San Francisco62.9% on-time
- Boston ↔ Denver63.1% on-time
- Denver ↔ New York63.2% on-time
- Los Angeles ↔ San Francisco63.8% on-time
- Nashville ↔ Boston64.8% on-time
- Denver ↔ Seattle65.8% on-time
- Denver ↔ Detroit66.1% on-time
On-time = arrival within 15 minutes of schedule, per U.S. DOT definitions. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (public domain). Delay-cause attribution is reported by carriers since June 2003.